P5: Phantom Drive
by Jacob Pendra-Huth
Summary: A re-adaptation of the Persona 5 game/anime, featuring three new OCs to the series: The trouble-prone Guren Sakura, the self-proclaimed otaku Haneru Kurosawa, and the veteran Persona-user Mia Kurosawa. The story revolves around the viewpoint of these three heroes, and how they impact the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, and those associated with them. Co-writing with Coral the Leviathan.
1. Haneru Awakens! Fantasy & Reality!

**With the recent debut of the new 'Persona 5 the Animation', I decided to start a plan for a collaborated work between me and my fellow Fanfiction writer, Coral the Leviathan. She and I both made the idea of creating OCs for the series, so here we are, going into try and work together to create a story surrounding the game and anime Persona 5. One of the OCs is Coral's, while the two that are gonna be told in this first part of the story, are mine. Hopefully it will appeal to you all, and that it will steal your hearts!**

* * *

Toyota. A small area in the south-central area of Japan, located in the Aichi prefecture. It was a nice, old town, with plenty of decent people, going about their lives. Whether it was going to work, spending time with love ones, or whatever, the people here were pretty much normal here as anyone else.

Inside an old music store, a few people were examining the albums, old records, and whatnot. Standing in one part of the store, with headphones in his ears, was a third year high-school student. He had olive green eyes and dark blonde hair, tied in a small bun in the back. He wore his old high school uniform, which was brown with a gray undershirt, and beige slacks. He wore green and black tennis shoes underneath his slacks, an armband on his left arm, with a picture of a couple of teen anime characters on it, wielding swords, and wore a silver pendant of a pair of swords crossing a shield, like a coat-of-arms.

He was listening to a tune on the headphones, with the title 'Mr. Launcher' by LiSA. His eyes were closed, totally stuck in his imagination as he listened to the song. He could visualize the battle scenarios that went through his mind, going along with the rhythm of the music. He was totally hooked to it.

Just then, there was a tap on his shoulder, and he turned to see the store owner, a middle-aged man, glaring down at him. "Hey, you've been standing here for a good long while, kid. Are you gonna purchase this, or are you gonna leave?"

The high-school student was startled at how long he had been standing here, looking at his phone, seeing the time. It was late in the afternoon, and he came here after school. "S-Sorry, Mr. Takeyama…" the student apologized, "I would like this song, thanks. Can you transfer it to my phone?"

"Same as usual?" the owner sighed, "Honestly, can't you just go online and purchase this same song?"

"But this store has everything out where I can see it." the student answered, "Besides, I like it here. Don't you want me as a customer?"

Mr. Takeyama chuckled as he pointed out, "Can't argue with that. With the internet as it is, my usual customers seem to be fewer and fewer. You're one of my most constant one, Haneru. Though, from what I heard, you're gonna be leaving soon."

The student, Haneru, looked down sadly. "Yeah. My mom is transferring to a new hospital. It's in the big city, so I am pretty nervous. Thank goodness for music, anime and video games, eh?"

They went to the cashier desk as Mr. Takeyama took Haneru's phone, and burned the music from the disc onto it. "You know, it wouldn't hurt to go and talk with folks. Maybe make some new friends around your age, instead of old adults like me."

"If it only were that easy…" the student sighed, placing his money on the table, and taking back his phone, "Thanks a bunch, sir. Hope business still goes well with you."

"We'll see." he answered, "Say hi to your mom for me."

"Will do. Bye." Haneru waved him off, walking out of the store. As soon as he left, he immediately placed on his earbuds, plugged it into his phone, and went through the selection of music. He decided to go to one of his usuals, and started playing 'Egao No Mahou' by MAGIC PARTY. He shouldered his backpack, and wandered his way back home.

 _"My name is Haneru Kurosawa. I'm seventeen years old, and I'm a third year in high school. My birthday is May 29th, meaning my Zodiac Sign is Gemini, meaning I should be able to communicate well with others, however…"_

Haneru looked to see a group of students around his age, laughing and talking together as they passed by him. One or two of them noticed him, but they didn't approach him, and continued to walk by.

 _"…That's a challenge to me. After all, I am an otaku. For those of you who don't understand that term, it means I love anime, manga, video games, all that jazz. I'm not afraid to admit it, even to other people. Though, that does make it difficult to get along with classmates. When I try to talk to others about normal things and stuff, I end up sounding shy. When I try talking about things I enjoy, my speech is usually defined as 'animated' to others my age. Still, I don't mind. That's who I am, after all."_

Haneru crossed a bridge, reaching his way to the train station. He walked up the stairs, and made his way to the train station. He scanned his phone on the gate as he entered, went in line with other folks as he entered the train, the doors closing behind him. He felt the train move, then decided to change his music again, going to something more calming. He pulled up a song called 'Gentle Hope' by Saori Hayami, and let the music take him away as the train moved along.

 _"Today was my last day in this high school. A few weeks ago, my mom, who is a skilled nurse in this town, ended up getting a transfer to Saitama. I question why we are moving there when we are just fine here, and she answered that they have a better pay salary for her there than here. There was one other reason, I was sure of that. Mainly due to one person in this town…"_

The train doors opened, and Haneru walked out, looking at his music, noticing it was almost done. He wandered away, going down a block, then turned right on his street. He found his home the second one on the left. It was a three story apartment complex, four apartments per floor. His home was on the third floor, apartment #302. Walking up the steps, he used his key to unlock the door and enter in.

His house was in the middle of a transition, with boxes here and there, loading for the big move happening next week. What wasn't loaded yet were just the essentials to last for the week, or in Haneru's case, something he wouldn't mind keeping out until the last minute.

"I'm home." Haneru called out, putting his backpack down next to his shoes, which he slipped off. No one answered, but he could hear someone talking on the phone in one of the bedrooms. He walked over, knocked on the door where the voice was coming from, and entered in.

The room he entered was his mom's room. It was quite cluttered, as it was still in the process of being packed up and put away. Standing near her nightstand was a woman in her late thirties, with hair the same color as her son, and eyes an orangish-yellow. Though she was a single mother, she was slightly physically fit. She wore a dark blue cardigan, slim blue jeans, her pink slippers, and a blue gem necklace with a butterfly-shaped silver frame around it. She also wore a golden ring around her ring finger, signaling her still being married.

"Yes, of course. I have made sure to transfer all of my documents to Saitama." she informed the caller, "Don't worry. I'll finish the last of the paperwork by the day after tomorrow. Yes, thank you. Good-bye."

She hung up the phone, sighing in relief from ending that call. "Was that the hospital?" Haneru asked her, getting her attention.

"Yes, it was. They're just making sure I have everything prepared for my transfer." she answered, smiling, "Anyways, it's good to see you home again. Help me out with the packing, please?"

"Yeah, okay…" Haneru grumbled, knowing that he was gonna do a lot of work for her, even after the busy day at school.

"Don't give me that tone, Haneru." the mother huffed, "As far as I saw, you barely packed anything away at all in your room. You even have all your posters still up, even though I told you to put them away a week ago."

"I'll get to it, okay?" Haneru assured her, "It's not like we'll be leaving tomorrow or anything." His mother sighed at his behavior at all of this.

 _"This is my mom, Mia Kurosawa. She's a nurse at our local hospital. Her occupations besides that are swimming to stay in shape, and also likes things as clean as possible in the house. She is a great mother, but she worries about me a bit too much, saying that I don't socialize with people as much. That is completely untrue, as I do socialize…just, more with people online and stuff. Even so, for someone who is a single mother, she handles things well."_

 _"I don't know much about my father. He disappeared when I was two years old, so I don't exactly know what happened to him. My mom said he had gone overseas, and lost contact with us ever since, so she's unsure of where he was. She always did tell me a lot about him, and how they met in high school and fell in love. He was a brave guy, and a strong-willed one, which mom said where she gained her own strong will from. I really don't understand what she means by this, but she claims that since I'm their son, I should be just as strong as them. Like that could happen, though. I'm way too much of an outcast and shy to be counted as 'strong-willed'."_

For the rest of the afternoon, Haneru and Mia spent a lot of time packing away the unessentials for the week in boxes. Haneru took care of his own room afterwards, pulling off several posters he had on the walls.

His room was essentially describing his favorite anime and video games ever. A few of his posters included a group of fighters led by a sword-wielding girl in white and a boy in black, a group of nine pirates, led by a boy in a straw hat, a music-themed group of magical girls with a white cat, a group of street dancers the the name 'Tri-Cool' over them, and much more. He had other things besides posters that showed off his love of all things anime and video games. His stuffed animal collection contained a plethora of creatures from one of his favorite games. He had a few pendants on a knob in the wall, including one that looked like a key and a sword rolled into one. He had a couple figures on the table showing off a few characters, including a blue hedgehog. It was pretty ridiculous to see how much he had.

After Haneru packed up his posters and a few other things, he settled back on his bed, looking up at the ceiling. "Only a week remains." he sighed, closing his eyes, "I wonder being in the city will change me better than here…" In truth, he was pretty lonely at school, what with people not sharing the same things he enjoyed. Still, he didn't mind the solitude. It was the life he picked.

Haneru looked to the digital clock on his computer. 5:19 PM. "I can go and still do one session tonight on the roof." he told himself, grabbing his phone and his speaker nearby, then raced out the door before his mother could say anything to stop him. However, she knew what he was doing.

Haneru raced up to the open-area rooftop of the apartment complex. It was darkening outside, meaning the lights were on up there. He found his usual space in the back part of the rooftop, and set up his music, readying one of his favorite dance soundtracks to listen to. He quickly pressed the play button, and backed away to a position.

 _(Cue from Soundcloud 'Tribe Cool Crew OS -Dance Side- : Change the Mind- LET ME SHOW THE BRIGHT')_

Haneru listened to the music, his eyes closed, focusing on the rhythm as it started out. He thought back to the first episode of this anime, of the one kid who first started dancing to this song. He wanted to dive fully into the character, who had the same first name as him, and into the dance he did. He then snapped his eyes open and started dancing. His style was hip-hop, slightly sloppy, but for a beginner, it wasn't too bad. He was enjoying himself, and trying to match the same movements of the person he had watched.

 _"This is just who I am. Though I am alone, I like to dive into my imagination, and pretend I was one of those cool anime characters. Whether a swordsman, a mage, a martial artist, or a street dance performer, I always had the fascination for the heroes. No matter who or what they deal with, they overcome and keep moving forward, and rally others when they don't have a voice for themselves. I know it's all fiction, and that those kind of people are impossible to find in real life. Still, if there is a chance for me… If I could become that hero… I would truly embrace it, and go for it."_

As the song ended, Haneru tried performing a backflip, the last move before he could strike a pose, but he got over half-way before he hit the ground, knocking the wind out of him. There was silence as the song was over, except for Haneru's groan from failing the technique.

"Still jumpin' and failin' to leap over the black bog, I see." said a voice nearby. Haneru looked up to see, sitting in a fold-out chair nearby, a guy that was not there before. He was around Haneru's age, with black, damp-spiked hair, and small pupils. He wore a simple black t-shirt, blue jeans and sports shoes, and wore a grin on his face at the sight of him on the ground.

"You know…that joke is getting really old." Haneru groaned, getting back to his feet again. The guy chuckled at Haneru's words, then responded, "Can't help it. I'll milk that joke till you are gone."

 _"This is Nikolo Hideyoshi, the only other person in this apartment complex who is close to my age. He an alright guy, but a person who tends to poke fun at me, mainly at my name, which literally translates to 'Leaping the black marsh'. Even so, I ended up getting him interested in anime and video games like me, so we can talk on the same level…well, almost."_

"So, did you see any news on a second season of those couple of anime you enjoy?" Nikolo asked him as Haneru sat next to him, cross-legged, resting his back on the wall.

"Unfortunately, no. Not sure if they'll actually put one up." he answered, "Still, that one anime should have a second season, at least. It was pretty comical, with that dragon maid girl, after all."

"Yeah, not to mention that the season finalé of that American-made show ended recently." Nikolo sighed, "All we can do is wait for the new stuff to come rolling in."

"Yeah…" Haneru agreed, looking up at the sky, "Plus those new games that are suppose to come out this year. I'm anxious to get them, as well as those manga to be posted online."

"Geez, whenever you talk, it's nothing but anime, manga and video games." Nikolo pointed out, "You seriously are an otaku, aren't you."

"Never denying it." Haneru answered, grinning, "I chose this life, and it's how I roll."

"And…you're okay with that?" his friend asked.

"What do you mean?" Haneru asked, looking curiously at him.

"I mean, don't you want to be more?" Nikolo asked, standing up and turning about, "You're pretty amazing at classes, and you are a somewhat skilled dancer, but you spend so much time just focusing on those otaku things. You're gonna be moving in a week, so why don't you take this opportunity to decide whether you want to continue this path when you move."

"Hey, I'm fine as I am." Haneru retorted, flipping onto his feet again, "I still have a future, and just like a brand new anime episode, I never know what's gonna happen next. So I wait for the path made for me to come."

"Suit yourself." Nikolo sighed, "I'm just trying to help you out, since you'll be gone in a week. At least, as long as Mr. Oda doesn't get in the way."

"Why would he want to interfere with our move?" Haneru asked, "Seriously, I would think he would be glad to get rid of me. He hates me, you know."

 _"Remember before when I said there was one person that we would like to get away from. Mr. Oda is the landlord of this apartment complex. In fact, he owns several of them in this area. He's a grumpy old guy who likes to stick his nose in other people's lives where it doesn't belong. And the worst part is that he seems to get his way with people who live in one of his apartments. He is manipulative, and greedy, and he hates kids like me, for some reason. I don't get why, though. Just probably because I am not a kid from his era. I'm glad of that, though. I hate to be like him."_

"Well, better get back home." Nikolo told Haneru, walking to the door back downstairs, "Dad's coming back early today, so we're having homemade sushi. If you want, we can get you guys some."

"Sure." Haneru answered with a grin. With that, his friend opened and closed the door, exiting the scene. Haneru stood there, looking at the door, then up at the clouds, wondering. If he was honest with himself, he had always fleeted between reality and fiction, not wanting to completely embrace in either one. Still, when he said that he awaited whatever the future brought, he meant it. He wanted something to come his way, like in those anime or video games, that'll suddenly change his life, and make him find that path. However, that was fiction, and this was reality. Things didn't really work that way. But he was too worried about wanting to make the first step on his own, thinking it won't work for him, and that he would live a sad life. What was his future? He had no idea.

Deciding to shake off these thoughts, he packed up all of his stuff in a pocket, and departed the rooftop, heading back downstairs. This was his life, after all. Always stuck in his habits, and wondering where to go from here.

He returned to his home, opening the door and closing it behind. He could hear a pair of voices, and could tell who the second voice was, unfortunately. He entered the main room. Passing the kitchen, he noticed, sitting at the dining room table, an elderly old man, bald, with white wisps of hair on the sides. He was hunched over, based on his bad back. He wore a black blazer over a red shirt, blue velcro jeans, shoes designed for comfortability, and a wristwatch.

"Oh, great. The little brat is home." he grumbled, seeing Haneru standing there.

"Mr. Oda…" he greeted, frowning at him. His immediate thought is that, once again, he avoided taking off his shoes at the door, as he should've done.

Mia was pouring tea for him as she stated, "I was just telling him that I had finalized the papers for my transfer to Saitama. We should be able to move smoothly."

"Yes, that is true…" Oda replied, taking the tea and sipping it, "And good riddance to you, kid. I swear, causing a commotion to the others with your stupid music, show and whatnot. You are a constant pain in my butt."

"That is not true!" Haneru argued, "No one has told me that in the slightest. Besides, I always put my headphones in when I play games and watch videos. You are obviously making stuff up!"

"And what if I am?" he huffed, glaring at him, "Don't forget, I still own this complex, as well as several others in this part of the district."

"Still, that doesn't give you an excuse to hate me!" Haneru retorted angrily, "What did I ever do to you?!"

"Haneru, that's enough." Mia stopped him, silencing her son, "Mr. Oda, every time you come to this house, you have constant disrespect for my child. I don't see why you hate him so much."

Oda sipped his tea again, ignoring the comment, then looked up at Mia as he continued, "Never mind. Anyways, about your final pay for the apartment. Considering how things stand, I am feeling you owe me a lot more for several things, like the installments you placed in this apartment…"

"Which you allowed me to add, if I might add." Mia reminded him.

"…And the constant complaints and troubles your son has made…" Oda continued.

"Stuff you made up!" Haneru added, "I haven't done anything wrong!"

"Let me remind you of that incident you pulled a few months ago." Oda told him, "You know, the one involving throwing that brick through my window, twice!"

"That wasn't me!" Haneru retorted, "I was with Nikolo at the arcade that day!"

"Yeah, and he isn't much of a trustworthy kid, either, just like his father." Oda retorted, "Besides, there were eyewitnesses who saw you throw that brick into my house." Haneru curled his fists, wondering why someone would think they saw him do such a crime. It was true that Oda didn't go to court with this, but he still hung this over Haneru whenever he had the chance.

"Now, back to my last payment." Oda continued, turning to Mia, "Considering all these claims, I think you should be able to pay, say, ten times the previous amount."

The words shocked both Mia and Haneru, the former adding, "But why?!"

"You can't do this!" Haneru barked, "You don't have the right to do this!"

"Come now, Mia. You are a nurse. You should be very loaded right now." Oda pointed out, smirking, "Surely, you can pay that amount."

"I…" Mia started, the teapot in her hands shaking, along with her hands.

"This is blackmail!" Haneru retorted, "You were waiting for something like this to happen so you could fine us like this, weren't you?! That's why you were so lenient on stuff!"

"Oh, don't be so imaginative, boy." Oda retorted, "Why don't you go to your room and play with your stupid toys, and leave the adult stuff to us."

Haneru was having so many thoughts of how many ways he could strike this guy down. His fists were curled, and his teeth were grit. He didn't care what this guy said. He was taking things too far.

Just then, Mia placed the teapot on the table, then glared calmly at Mr. Oda. "I'm sorry, sir. I don't see any reasons to pay for the price you are asking me for. I will pay the previous amount, as you told me, and that'll be the end."

Oda sighed, then shook his head. "Honestly, I do see a reason for you to pay the amount I am asking for NOW." he stated, looking up at her with a glare, "If you don't, I will sue you and your family for illegal installations into my apartment complex, as well as property damage to my house, along with other things, if I may add."

Mia was startled at this, while Haneru was seething with anger. He came at him and smacked the teacup out of Oda's hands, causing it to shatter against the wall. "Haneru!" his mother gasped, racing over and stopping him from going any further. Never had she seen him go this far in anger.

"You asshole!" Haneru roared at the landlord, "You set us up for this, didn't you?! Just admit it!"

"Looks like I'll have to add physical abuse to me on your charges, as well." Oda added, ignoring Haneru's accusations.

"Haneru, stop it!" Mia barked.

"You're gonna allow him to get away with this, mom?!" Haneru demanded, shocked his mom would just allow this to happen, "Whether we pay the amount of money he's asking for or not, we won't have enough to start off with in Saitama!"

"In that case, I have another proposition." Oda decided, standing up and walking towards the door, "I can reduce the price back to normal, but only on one condition…" He looked back at the two as he continued, "…That boy leaves this apartment, but not you, Mia. He leaves this district and never comes back, or else I take all of you to court."

Mia and Haneru looked startled at his proposition, then Mia stated, "But why would you want me to stay?! Besides, I already finalized the papers for my transfer. I can't go back to my normal job anymore, and I have to leave in a week."

"I know that. Don't worry about it, though." Oda continued, walking away, "I can allow you to be my personal nurse at home. Besides, with a young and healthy lady like yourself, you should be able to get 'other kinds of jobs', too." The way he phrased the last words, he knew what he was planning for Mia to work at. He was not only twisted, but sick as well.

Haneru felt like he would break his teeth the way he was gritting them. It took all he had not to swear or strike. Mia had a good grip on him, but the way her hand quivered, it told her how frustrated she was at the monster before her.

"I'll give you the end of the week before you make a decision." he stated, walking out the door, looking back at them with a grin, "Don't be too long on it." With that, he closed the door, leaving an empty silence after the door clicked shut.

Mia relinquished her grip on Haneru, who turned back at her as he demanded, "How could you let him get away with this?! He's totally blackmailing us!"

"I know, I know." she answered, "I seriously don't know his reasons for this, but he clearly is trying to destroy us, especially you."

"If we pay his demands, we won't have enough to start a proper life in Saitama." Haneru pointed out, "In fact, we'll be flat broke because of it! And if we don't pay for that, he'll bring us to court!"

"He has connections to the court, including our defense attorney." Mia pointed out, "He could make it for him to not be able to defend us at all. And with those demands, we'll be paying more than what he is demanding us."

"I bet he was waiting for this specific moment, wasn't he?" Haneru huffed, stomping back and forth in the room, "He wanted to make sure that we would be leaving soon, and then surprise us with this blackmail JUST as you got the finalizations for the transfer to the other hospital, just so that we would be trapped, no matter which way we'll go."

Mia was cleaning up the broken teacup on the floor, muttering, "He will reduce the price on our final payment if you left, though I won't be able to work at that hospital anymore…"

"But, mom, I can't go out there by myself!" Haneru pointed out, "I…don't have anywhere else to go. I need you…cause, I'll be helpless, out there."

He and Mia were both frustrated at this situation. This was clearly a pinned down situation that Mr. Oda put them in. He was cunning enough to pull it off, and also cruel enough to allow it to happen. He was greedy, manipulative, and hateful to Haneru. Why? Why would he detest Haneru this badly?

"Haneru, I know you are angry, but it's late." Mia told him, "You should head to bed."

 _"Yeah, right. Like I could go to bed with all of this happening to me!"_ the otaku boy mentally retorted. He stomped towards his room, slamming the door behind him, leaving his mom alone in the kitchen.

She looked down at the broken teacup in her hands, dumping them into the garbage. She looked at her hands, and noticed a part of the cup had cut one of her fingertips. Her eyes wavered, tears starting to form from them. _"I'm sorry, Haneru…"_ she apologized, _"I'm so sorry you have such a weak and helpless mother like this. Your father would've known what to do in this situation. I just…I can't…"_ She fell to her knees and cried, her hands placed over her eyes, not caring for the blood that dripped from her fingertip, down her forehead.

Inside his room, Haneru was laying on his back, looking at the ceiling. He was angry he couldn't do anything to help his mom. He was angry that Mr. Oda had put them in such a bind like this. It was just like that incident a few months ago, as the old landlord had explained.

He and Nikolo were just walking home, having enjoyed going to the arcade together. However, they were stopped by the noise of something breaking through a pair of windows. They rushed to the scene, where they stood in front of Mr. Oda's house, which was a two-story house, surprisingly large for a man of his age and being alone.

He came out of his house, showing a pair of bricks and accusing Haneru for breaking them, along with a few other things that were broken inside the house. A few of the people living in the place said they saw Haneru do the deed, even though he and Nikolo pleaded that he had not done it. However, among the people, Nikolo's mother was also there, trying to tell her son the truth that he also saw Haneru do it, baffling him. In the end, Mr. Oda just stated that he was trying to defend his friend, and also chose to not charge Haneru of assaulting his house. However, when they parted, Oda gave the most malicious grin the otaku had ever seen. He knew he was gonna hang this over him, and use it when the time was right.

The time was now. He was gonna use this, along with an assortment of lies, to further his case. He might even put Haneru into Juvenile Hall, giving him no future to look forward to. He had no where else to go, and no way to progress further.

 _"God, I'm so useless!"_ he told himself, slamming his fist onto his pillow, _"I can't believe there's no way out of this! This is what I get for not acting, and waiting for a path to show itself. Why…why couldn't I just be the hero, like in all those stories? Why…?"_

For the longest of time, he wanted to cry, but he just couldn't. His frustration at the situation was too great. All those anime and video games, and none of them showed a realistic way to get out of this.

He pulled out his smartphone, ready to plug it in. As he looked at the screen, he noticed something. There was a new app on it. It was red and black-outlined, with a picture of a creepy eye, with a star-shaped pupil on it. He didn't remember downloading something like this, before. Where did it come from? He tapped the icon, and it zoomed the app thumbnail in, showing a bar underneath for something to type in. After examining it for a bit, it looked like some sort of navigation app. "Why would I need this?" he asked, "It's not like this will help me out of my predicament."

He flopped his hand gripping his smartphone to one side, grimacing. "Damn, that Mr. Oda. I wish…I could do something to stop that spiteful, manipulative old man."

"CANDIDATE FOUND." his phone suddenly spoke, startling Haneru. He looked at it, and noticed the words, 'Mr. Oda' and 'manipulation' on it. "What the…" he asked, looking at the screen, "Did it…did it just pick up what I said?"

He sat up, looking at the present app on his phone. This wasn't normal. Why would his phone react to him mentioning Mr. Oda and talking about his manipulative personality? "What's going on?" he asked himself, looking at the app, "I wonder…could this app be able to tell what crimes people have done? If so, maybe this app is telling me Mr. Oda's crime!"

He shook his head at this thought though. "On second though, no way. There's no way a digital app is this good. It's not like any of those anime I watch. Still…" he looked down at the details on the app, "…It is a navigation app. Maybe…I need to put in a location? Maybe the house he lives at…"

"CANDIDATE FOUND." the app spoke again. For a moment, things almost looked distorted around him, but it disappeared the moment it appeared. "What the…?!" Haneru gasped, looking about. What was that? Some sort of hallucination? Was it made by this app?

Just then, there was a clatter on the ground outside. "Mom!" Haneru gasped, and he raced out of his door. His mother was standing there, the mop handle dropped on the ground, which was the result of the noise. She looked around, shocked and puzzled. "Mom, are you okay?" he asked, worried at her expression.

"Y-Yes…" she answered, her tone not completely truthful. She had just sensed something a second ago. Something she had not felt since her high school years.

"What is it?" Haneru asked, wondering, "Did…did you feel that, too?"

Mia looked to him, startled. "You felt it?!" she asked.

"Yeah. For a split second, everything looked funky." he explained, showing his smartphone, "The weird thing is, it happened when I placed in Mr. Oda's house in this app."

"An app?" Mia asked, looking closely at it.

"Yeah. I never installed it, or nothing. It appeared there." He looked at the phone screen again, "I said Mr. Oda's name, the word 'manipulation', and where he lives. This app seemed to have reacted to that."

What he didn't notice was a petrified look from Mia. No…no, there was no way THAT would appear. There was just no way something like this would happen again, would it? And to her son, no less. She had to stop him.

"Haneru, delete that app, now." she ordered him.

"Why?" he asked, confused, "This app might help accuse Mr. Oda of what he is doing to us."

"I-It's probably junk!" Mia stammered hastily, "It might cause a bug if you do anything more. Please, just delete it."

"No, wait." Haneru stopped, "It's asking for something else. From what I could see…wait, what is this? His cognition?"

"Give me your phone, so I can delete that app!" Mia asked him, stepping forward with a raised hand.

"Why?" Haneru asked, holding his smartphone close, "Mom, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I don't want you to go any further with that." she demanded, "Just delete the app, now!"

"Mom, you are acting strange." Haneru stated, very hesitant, "You've never been this like this to me and my stuff, before."

"This…this is different." Mia retorted, grabbing Haneru's wrist to snatch the smartphone, "Now delete that app, or I'll delete it myself."

"No!" Haneru relinquished his grip from his mom, and raced out the door.

"Haneru!" his mother raced after him. Haneru was athletic, but so was his mom. Haneru had just reached the ground floor when his mom grabbed ahold of him. "Give me that phone, Haneru!" she demanded, struggling for his other hand.

"Let…go!" Haneru ordered, straining against his mom's grip, "Why are you so against this app?! Do you know what it is?!"

"Never mind that!" Mia answered angrily, "I will not allow you to go any further with that wretched thing!"

"But why?!" her son demanded, "What do you know about this app?! It might help us stop Mr. Oda!"

"The only thing it will do is drive this family apart even more!" Mia barked at him, "I won't let you go like your father did!"

At this Haneru stopped struggling, as did his mom. She realized she had just said something she didn't mean to say. "What…?" he asked, wanting his mom to repeat what she just said.

"I…I…" she was trying to find a way to take back what she said. However, this was an impossibility. He had just heard what she said.

"What do you mean, the same way as my dad?" Haneru asked, "You told me he went overseas. What does this app have to do with him?"

Mia clenched her fists, refusing to tell him the truth. There was no way he should know what really happened to her father. What happened to him and some of her friends. She couldn't allow that. "Listen to me. You cannot use that app." she ordered, "I will try to figure out some way to reason with Mr. Oda. We don't need something like that to change his mind."

After a few seconds, Haneru muttered, "I can tell you know what this app is. I know that you were lying about my dad leaving overseas. It's written all over your face, mom. You don't think I wouldn't know? I'm your son!"

"Haneru…" his mother muttered, wanting to say something, but he continued, "I don't know what you have against this app. I have a bunch of questions, right now, but I know one thing; There's no way for us to reason with Mr. Oda. You know he hates me! And let's face it, he is attracted to you, mom! That guy's sick! He manipulates everyone around here, and treats them like a tyrannical king would treat subjects! To him, this place might as well be a village of peasants, surrounding his palace at his house!"

"RESULTS FOUND." his smartphone spoke again, startling the two. Haneru looked at it, noticing a new word added to the list of words already mentioned; 'Palace in a village'. Suddenly, his app spoke, "BEGINNING NAVIGATION." Suddenly, the area around them went weird, turning a purplish color.

"What the heck?!" Haneru gasped, looking about.

"No…we're going there!" Mia muttered, fearfully examining the scenario.

The screen on his smartphone suddenly became black, with the weird eye filling the screen, going red, then getting glitchy on them. In fact, the entire place started to distort around them in red and black waves. All of a sudden, the area changed drastically. What were the usual buildings became old, Japanese living residents, like something out of Feudal Japan era. Their apartment building changed into something similar, with some brighter colors to it. Suddenly, right before their eyes, they were standing in the dirt street of an old Japanese village.

"Wha-!" Haneru gasped, looking about, "What happened?! Where's our apartment?! And the entire street?!"

Mia went from startled to concerned, looking about the street. "So…this is what Mr. Oda thinks of our home…" she muttered, "The Metaverse still truly exists. I can't believe it…"

As Haneru and his mom wandered into the middle of the street, with Haneru saying, "It looks like something out of my anime, if it were set in the Feudal Japan. Just what the heck is this place? And how did we get here?!"

"It's because of that app." Mia answered, getting his attention, "It's thanks to that that we ended up in this reality."

"Wait, what?" Haneru asked, "This reality? What the heck do you mean by that?"

Just then, the two heard some footsteps from the side streets. They turned to see a pair of soldiers, dressed in the attire of palace guards, wielding nagintatas in hand, approaching their position. Their faces were hidden by black, shogi piece-looking masks, with their red eyes peeping out through slits.

"Halt!" shouted one of them, both raising their lances to the startled pair. "Lord Oda gave orders to arrest any outsider who tries to enter his palace!"

"Lord…Oda?" Haneru asked, "What's with these guys?"

"Shadows!" Mia noticed, scared slightly by them, "Haneru, run!"

"Wh-why?" he asked, startled at his mother's fear.

"Arrest them!" one of the soldiers ordered, both of them readying their lances.

"Oh, that's why…" Haneru answered as Mia grabbed his arm and ran away with him.

Their pursuers kept on their toes, but Mia was making sure they were several steps ahead of them. Haneru then noticed something. Every time they stepped, it gave off a splash of something red, despite the ground being dry. "What the heck is going on?!" Haneru demanded as they rounded into an alleyway.

Mia looked hastily and whispered, "Here!" she shoved Haneru and herself by a pile of wood, making sure their figures were in the shadows. They held their breath as they heard the two soldiers round the corner, racing up the alleyway.

"Where did they go?" one of them demanded.

"Search onward!" the other answered, and they raced past the Kurosawa family as they pursued towards the other side of the alleyway.

Haneru and Mia sighed in relief, then Haneru asked, "Mom, I get the feeling you know what is going on here. Is this the reason why you didn't want me to come here? Who were those guys? Why did they say something about 'Lord Oda'?"

Mia looked to her son, then down at the ground, thinking. It was obvious there was no way of avoiding talking about this place. It was time she divulged the truth about this place.

"This place…is not the realm of reality you and I know." she started, "This is a cognitive reality, known as the Metaverse."

"Cognitive reality? Metaverse?" Haneru echoed, "What the heck are you talking about?"

"In other words, we are in a reality formed by Oda." Mia further explained, "The distorted desires in his heart became strong enough to form this place. It is how he views our town."

"Wait, what?!" Haneru gasped, "Hold on, hold on! Let me thing for a moment… In other words, we are in another world, formed by Mr. Oda's heart? How?"

"This place we are in is basically a place where desires take forms." Mia explained, "There does exist a place where almost all people's negative and corrupt thoughts are at, but there are some who's thoughts are so strong, that they can form their own area that is based from the person's viewpoint of a particular place in the world. These places manifest in the Metaverse, creating places known as Palaces."

This was quite a bit to take in for Haneru, who's head was spinning from all the information dumped onto him. Still, he used all his fantasy know-how to formulate what she was saying. "So…what your saying is that we are inside Mr. Oda's heart or something?" he asked.

"More like his subconscious, but you are right." Mia answered.

"But what about those soldiers we saw?" Haneru asked, "Who were they? More distortions?"

"They are the residence in this world, Shadows." Mia explained, "I don't really know much about them, other that they represent certain parts of our hearts. They usually take the forms of monsters we know from folklore and such. However, in Palaces like this, they suppress these forms by turning into a human-like character that best represents the Palace they are in, such as soldiers. They protect the Palace, as well as a Shadow version of the person who created the place."

"Shadow version?" Haneru asked, confused.

"Probably this 'Lord Oda' that they speak of is the Shadow version of the Oda in reality." Mia assumed, looking about to see if the coast was clear, "Come on, we need to get out of here. Let's head back home."

They had stood up, and was just about to move when they heard someone shout, "OVER THERE!" They turned to see the previous soldiers they avoided before return, charging back at them.

"Run!" Mia shouted, and the two charged out the alleyway from the opposite side of the alleyway, with their enemies in hot pursuit. However, just as they reached the other side, they came to a halt in shock. Four other soldiers had already appeared, with their naginata weapons at the ready. The Kurosawa family turned behind, seeing the two that chased after them raise their weapons to prevent them from leaving. They were trapped.

"You are to be taken to Lord Oda immediately!" one of the soldiers barked, "And then, after hearing your accusations, you WILL be put to death!"

"P-Put to death?!" Haneru stammered, "Th-this has to be a joke, right?"

"I'm afraid it's not." Mia answered, startling her son, "If we die here, then we die for real." Haneru paled at this revelation. They would kill the both of them? For real?

"Move along with us!" bark one of the soldiers from behind, prodding Haneru with the blade of his naginata. The sharpness of the blade forced behind him made him yelp in pain. That immediately told him that those were not props. Those could cut and kill him. He had no choice as he and Mia were escorted along the path by the soldiers.

As they continued on the path, Haneru and Mia looked about the other houses. None of them looked like the buildings in their real world. Not only that, but there didn't seem to be any real people around, apart from the soldiers guiding them. The windows were closed and the doors were barred from the outside on each and every house, as if to prevent people from leaving their homes at all times.

"What is going on with this place?" Haneru asked, "Why are there no people out here besides us?"

"Don't play dumb!" one of the soldiers spat, "Lord Oda placed in a curfew on the village, so that no one is allowed to leave their homes at this time."

"A curfew?!" Haneru echoed, surprised, "Why would there be one on an entire town?! That makes no sense…"

"Silence!" one of the soldiers prodded him in the back, making him yelp, "No one defies the rules of our lord without severe punishment!"

Haneru massaged the part of his back that blade poked him at. He then felt something slightly moist, and looked at his hand. His eyes shrunk a bit. A bit of blood had started to form on his back. "Th…this is…" he muttered, his fears starting to rise.

"Haneru, calm down." Mia told him, "If you start to panic, it will only make things worse."

"But… Mom, I'm bleeding!" he exclaimed, "They are legitimately stabbing me! How can I not be calm?!"

"The punishment you will gain will be far worse than this." the soldier warned him, "We are arriving at the palace." The eight of them stopped, and the Kurosawa duo looked up at something that took their breath away. It was a feudal Japan-styled palace, four-stories tall, with red walls decorated with silver and gold trimmings, and brown-tiled roofs. It was surrounded by a wall too high to climb over. The door was a thick, solid oak, and was twice the height of either Mia or Haneru. More soldiers guarded the doors as well as the corners of the palace walls.

"This is Mr. Oda's house?!" Haneru questioned in shock, "It's hardly the two-story place he lives in before!"

"This is the cognitive version of how he views his home." Mia explained, "He thinks of his house as a grand palace amongst the lowly people in our town, to fit his status as a landlord. To think he would think of his home with such grandeur…I never knew."

Without words, the doors in front of them opened up slowly, and they were forcefully escorted inside. There were more soldiers patrolling the grounds inside, which were that of a decorated Japanese garden. The pathway was cobblestone, and they led the the front steps of the palace, where they were introduced to an even bigger shock. Mr. Oda was standing there, but he was clearly different from the man they knew.

He was standing upright, and had his 'longer than real life' hair styled in a spiked ponytail, tied by a decorated rope. He wore a black and red-trimmed coat, with a red and gold-trimmed underside, over silver and gold-trimmed armor that covered his chest, shoulders, arms and waist. He wore a brown hakama for pants, and wooden clogs underneath.

"Is that…?" Haneru gasped, seeing a man he knew, but didn't recognize.

"So you two are the rule-breakers my soldiers caught, eh?" Oda spoke, his voice having a sort of eerie, ethereal echo to it, "I should've expected as such from you, boy. But you, Mia Kurosawa. How dare you not only encourage your son to roam outside during curfew, but even join with him. Such a disappointment…"

"What are you talking about? What's with that outfit?!" Haneru demanded.

"Be silent! Kneel before Lord Oda!" barked one of the soldiers, shoving him and Mia down with the pole of his naginata into a kneeling position.

"So this…is Oda's Shadow." Mia grimaced, looking up at the man before them.

"Shadow?" Haneru echoed, not sure what she meant, "What are you talking about?"

Lord Oda didn't pay attention to them, but instead started off, "The crimes you have committed are as follows: Leaving your home outside of curfew. Attempted escape from my soldiers. And disrespecting me, the lord of this dominion. These are serious crimes, and all of which lead you to the same judgement: execution."

Haneru looked shocked at this judgement, not able to believe he would go to such lengths. "E-Execution?!" he stammered, "You can't be serious!"

"Oh, but I am." Lord Oda smirked, "Your death, in particular, will be swift and painful, Haneru. Usually, I don't mind slowly torturing my victims. However, you are an exception."

Haneru clenched his teeth, hardly believing this. Mr. Oda was far crueler than the man he knew. The one he knew did hate him, and did treat him worse than any other person in the apartment building. However, this was more than just him hating Haneru. He wanted him out of his life…permanently.

Just then, Mia stood up to her feet without hesitation, getting the attention of Shadow Oda and her son. "I will not allow you to do that to my son." she scowled, "He has done nothing wrong to you, so why should he be treated in such a way? You have no right in the other world OR this one to be so cruel to my son!"

"Mom…" Haneru muttered, amazed at her daring to stand up in this situation.

"Oh, Mia. You are a lovely vixen with such a daring heart." Oda stated, "It reminds me of how you use to be back when you were younger. But look at you, now. A peasant who believes her voice can still be heard from those higher up than you. Give it up! You have no choice in this matter, and you never will! Why can't you just behave like my wife…?"

He turned to the doors behind him, which opened up to reveal a figure that startled both Mia and Haneru. She was dressed as a geisha girl, with a white and sakura petal-patterned yakuta and red obi. A rose petal on a metal stem holding her hair in a bun. However, there was no doubt who this person was.

"M-Mom?!" Haneru gasped, seeing his mom's look-a-like stepping out to join Oda's side.

"Here I am, my lord." the other Mia spoke up, bowing to him.

"There you are, my sweet." Oda responded, taking one of her folded hands and kissing the backside of it.

"What's going on, mom?!" Haneru questioned, standing up and looking at her, "Why is there a second version of you?! Is this one of those Shadows you spoke of?"

"No. That's not my Shadow." she answered with a growl, "This is merely a cognition. A version of me Oda's Shadow created. A version that is submissive and dedicated to him."

"That's sick!" Haneru spat, turning to Oda, "Why would you think of my mom that way?!"

"All who lack superiority in this world are nothing more than servants to me." Oda answered, "Mia is an exception, as she is not only smart, but beautiful to the eyes. There is no one in this village more worthy to be my wife than her."

"So this is how you view me? This is why you don't want me to leave?" Mia questioned him, her tone getting angrier with every question, "You are THIS obsessed about me, that you are going to any lengths to keep me close to you?!"

"All I ask is for you to behave and stay by my side as my 'personal' caretaker." Oda's Shadow told her, "If you only just agree to my terms, then I won't have to kill you. It is a one-time offer from the great Lord Oda himself. Not a bad deal, wouldn't you say?"

"That'll be no different than asking her to be your slave!" Haneru barked angrily.

"My son is right. I can't agree to such an agreement." Mia declared, and without warning, she turned and kicked one of the soldiers in the gut, grabbing his naginata while she was at it. "Run, Haneru!" she shouted, slashing one of the soldiers down to make an opening. Haneru didn't waste time, and took off towards the front gate.

"Stop them!" Oda ordered his soldiers, and four more appeared to block the path forward.

Haneru stopped, but Mia kept going, and slashed one of the soldiers, only to be forced to the ground by another. "Mom!" Haneru shouted, about to race to her aid, but found himself grappled by two of the soldiers, restraining him by the arms.

Mia tried to raise herself up, but was forced with her face to the ground once again. _'Damn it!'_ she thought to herself, _'Why isn't that power coming to me? Why is it not here? Could…could it be…that I forced it away?'_

"You still don't get it. Neither one of you has a chance of escaping me, here or in the real world." Oda stated, walking towards them.

Haneru turned his head back at Oda as he shouted, "Let mom go!"

"Why should I even listen to a worthless little brat such as yourself?" Oda questioned, "You're just a day-dreamer who lives a life in a fantasy, filled with ideas of freedom. Wake up! Freedom only is given to those in power like myself! What you try to seek will never come to pass!"

"Shut it!" Haneru barked, giving a harsh glare, "What gives you the right to take other's ideas of freedom?! We are not your property! We have our own freedom!"

Oda narrowed his eyes as the soldiers pulled Haneru around to look him directly in the face. There was no waver in Haneru's gaze. He was angry at what he was doing to his mom, and the ideals he was speaking of.

"That look…you look just like your father." the Shadow spoke, "It irks me every time I see it! He never seemed to submit to me, even in his high school years. I thought you would be different, but here you are; Trying to justify your ideals, rebelling against those in power, just like he did!"

"What?" Haneru questioned, taken aback at the change in the subject. Mr. Oda knew his father? And he was just like him?

"I thought I could stomp out that rebellious nature out of you, but no matter what I did, it never seemed to work." Oda spoke, "Then I thought of an idea; I could do something that could ruin your reputation in this town, and even allow me to blackmail you with when the time was right. Oh, the attack on my house so long ago became a perfect way to do it."

The news shocked both Mia and Haneru to their hearts. The one crime that Haneru was said to have done, even though he didn't. "What do you mean, you staged the attack?" Haneru asked, "You…you set it up?!"

"It was easy to do the damage to my own house." Oda snickered, "And as for the eye-witnesses…well, anyone can be persuaded when you know their weaknesses, right? Money, secret pasts. You name it, I can do it."

"You…" Haneru growled, his mind racing and raging at what he had done, and what he had hanging over him all this time. The false accusations people placed on him. And for what reason?

"You know, I think it would be better to kill you now." Oda stated, "That's one less fool of a dreamer in this world to deal with. Soldiers, on my mark!" Three soldiers came in front of him, readying bows and arrows, pointing them at Haneru, as the two soldiers held his arms apart, leaving him defenseless.

"No! Haneru!" Mia screamed, fearing the death of her child.

As Oda snickered, Haneru started up, in a quiet, raging tone, "So let me get this straight. You hate me because I am like my father, who you also hate? You lust for my mother, that you blackmailed her to stay here? You staged that attack on your house out of spite for me? You despise me, even though I never did anything to you, but only because I wasn't submissive to you. What kind of crap is that?!"

"I'll shut your insolent mouth for good, boy!" Oda growled, "Ready to fire, on my mark!" The soldiers pulled back their bows, ready to release. Mia pleaded with tears in her eyes, trying to force off the soldier holding her down. Haneru gritted his teeth, hating the man before him with all his might. He wanted to fight. He wanted to stand up against the tyranny of this monster of a man before him. He told himself before that he wanted to be a hero from the anime he watched. But now, he didn't care. Hero, villain or anti-hero. Whatever role he took, he would be it, just so he could fight for the freedom Oda stole from his mother and he.

" **My, what fortune this is to finally awaken.** " said a voice in Haneru's head, startling him. All of a sudden, he started to get the most severe headache he had ever felt in his life. He gasped and grimaced as he struggled to release his hands from the soldiers holding him, just to grasp his head.

" **You have been living in a fantasy for far too long. The freedom you seek will never come to pass if you don't shout your justice to the reality of the world.** " the voice continued to speak, " **Fight back with the rage in your heart. Drown out the tyranny that holds back your dreams. Become their personal nightmare.** "

Haneru cried out in agony as his head gave a huge spark of pain, feeling as if something suddenly appeared on his face, as the voice finished, " **Time to make our contract. I am thou. Thou art I. The fantasy you seek can become a reality. Show the world, and make them see thy true self!"**

Haneru glared at Oda, who was startled to see him with a mask over his eyes. One that looked like the upper part of a monkey face, black, with orange, mane-like hair around it. Mia looked shocked, seeing what her son was wearing. "It…can't be…" she muttered, "That's…"

"I don't know what this it, but it ends now!" Oda growled, waving a hand forward. The archers fired their arrows at Haneru, who miraculously found the strength to pull one of the restraining soldiers around, making it take the shots in the back, releasing his arm. While everyone was startled, he used his freed arm to grab the naginata that was dropped, and slash the other soldier restraining him, making him fall and disappear into nothingness.

Oda was in shock, while Haneru pounded the blade end of the weapon he used on the ground. "You pissed me off. Now, it's time I fight back!" he roared, grabbing one end of the mask on his face and started to pull it off. For some reason, it felt like it was part of his face, and it was a bit of a painful struggle. However, after a couples seconds, he yanked it off, taking some of his own blood with it. As soon as he ripped it off, he roared as his body exploded in blue flames that encompassed his body, startling the soldiers, Oda, and Mia.

When the flames revealed him, he was standing there, his entire clothing changing drastically. He wore classic black ninja garb, with red outlines on it. He had shoulder guards with muddy orange fur on the ridges. He bore a black beaded necklace around his neck, and a brown belt going diagonally across his chest. The naginata that was there before had transformed into a staff, red, with gold pieces on either end.

However, what had truly surprised everyone was who or what was behind him, glowing with the same blue flames that encompassed Haneru before. He was big, and slightly clear. It looked humanoid, with wild long, brown hair, and a mask hidden by a silver ninja headpiece. His garments were full-body black and green, with armored gloves that went up to his elbows, steel leggings that went up to his knees, and a long black obi around his waist, which was so long, that it hovered in the air behind him, before draping the ground at his feet. In his hands were twin short katanas, both held in a reverse grip, as it took a fighter's stance with them.

"Wh-What is this power?!" Oda gasped, stepping back as the archer soldiers stepped forward to protect their Lord.

The soldier who held Mia down, along with the others beside it, stepped back, also scared. Mia stood up on her feet, looking wide-eyed at her son. "Incredible…" she muttered, witnessing the power her son was exerting, "He…became a Persona user!"

"I won't keep living my life wishing to be a hero." Haneru growled, twirling his weapon, placing it in both hands, "It's time I make that dream come true, and it starts by punishing you, Oda!" He pulled the staff on either end, splitting it in half to reveal hidden blades inside. "Sasuke, let's go!" He made a leaping dash at the man before him, ready to start a fight that would lead him on a path to a future he never imagined.

A future where he would become a Phantom Thief.

* * *

 _(Opening: Life will Change (Persona 5))_

 **(Music intro)**

 _(Starting in a backdrop of a city with gray and black buildings and a red sky, the camera pans through the place, while the white shadows of eleven individuals racing and leaping passed walls. Then the words 'I am thou. Thou art I' form in cryptic newspaper letter cutouts, followed by the title of the series)_

 **It's not a game. I'm not a robot AI challenging you.**

 _(Ren Amamiya steps out of Leblanc, heading to school, with Morgana in his bag. Guren Sakura joins his side as they both leave, and the screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Theives looks, with the names 'Joker' 'Mona' and 'Lioness' under their respective people.)_

 **I'm not a phantom. I'm in your face and I'm here to see it through.**

 _(Mia puts on her shoes as she heads to work, with Haneru racing up behind her, dislodging his slippers and putting on his shoes to go to school. He waves his mom goodbye as the both open the door to walk out. Screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Thieves looks, with the names 'Kong' and 'Pixie' under each of them.)_

 **Right before your eyes, watch us multiply**

 _(Ryuji, Ann, and a silhouetted figure appear in three parts of the screen, then, with a flip of their respective confidant tarot cards, changing into their respective Phantom Thieves attire, with 'Skull' and 'Panther' listed to their respective owners.)_

 **Come to claim our rights - it's time**

 _(Three more silhouettes appear of the three remaining members, which shift to silhouettes of them in their Phantom Thieves outfits like the others.)_

 **As our power grows, trying to stop us shows…**

 _(Inside the interrogation room, Ren looks to Sae Nijima, who glares seriously at him, while she has pictures of victims he and the Phantom Thieves targeted on the table. Ren sees a sparkling blue butterfly pass his eyes, and he closes his eyes)_

 **(You) Might as well go try'n stop time**

 _(In the velvet room, the camera pans through the bars of the cell, past the twin prison wardens to Igor in his seat. He looks up at the protagonist with his usual grin, and the Metaverse Navigation app button appears behind him as he fades away, and the app activates.)_

 **(Song break)**

 _(From an overhead view of the central street of Tokyo, the area starts to shift as it changes to the Metaverse point of view. Tarot cards of every confidant fall down to the ground in the middle of the big street, where the Phantom Thieves stand, ready to go.)_

 **So you know that we're out there, swatting lies in the making.**

 _(Joker leads off summoning Arsene to his side, readying his dagger as he lunges at a masked Shadow, pulling it off and slashing at it. Lioness leaps in, stopping a pair of unknown Shadows with her rapier and stabbing them through the chest with a pair of thrusts.)_

 **Can't move fast without breaking. Can't hold on or life won't change.**

 _(Kong leap onto a head of a Shadow, whacking him in the back with his quarterstaff, knocking him to the ground before turning his staff into swords and making a falling stab onto him. Pixie uses Magaru with a twirl of her scythe, blowing away a bunch of Shadows. All four Persona users draw their guns out, pointing at four Shadows in the center of their circle, and fire at them.)_

 **And our voices ring out, yeah. Took the mask off to feel free.**

 _(Mona in van mode drives the known thieves, with Pixie at the wheel, as they journey through Mementos. They encounter a bunch of the main Shadow versions of human enemies, each transforming into large silhouettes of their respective monster forms, their eyes glowing.)_

 **Fought it out in the debris, now we know that life will change.**

 _(Mona transforms to normal as they all leap up into the air, Joker, Lioness and Kong taking off their masks to reveal their Personas, ready to attack.)_

 **(Music ending)**

 _(The scene shifts to several of their supporters doing their routines, from Sojiro running the Leblanc, to Mishima walking while looking at the Phan-Site on his phone, Akechi being interviewed on television, Takemi writing something at her clinic, to Kawakami teaching her class, Mifune flipping her tarot cards, then flipping over a calling card made by the Phantom Thieves. The scene shifts to a red and black, spiraling backdrop as the card along with all confidant cards fall into an abyss, replaced with the title of the series again.)_


	2. Guren Awakens! Fighting Trouble Back!

**Now it is time for the other side of the spectrum: the story of how Guren, an OC created by co-writer 'Coral the Leviathan', became a wielder of a Persona. Enjoy!**

 _(Igor speaking)_ **The following story takes place one year ago, before the Kurosawa's story, or any other story, began. It tells the tale of a girl who's grown up with a string of bad luck, and encountering trouble that she gets blamed for. However, as fate seems to do to people, it is through such injustice that allows a person to be ready. Ready to fight back in a world that is destined for ruin.**

* * *

It was dark and cold. The 'bed' she was sleeping on was rough as usual, and the 'wake up call', as she called it here, was loud as usual.

"Up and at 'em, Guren Sakura!" the guard shouted from out her jail room, banging the bars with his baton.

Familiar with the sound, for she had been in the place many times, Guren lazily got up from her place on the bed. Unlike many inmates, the brown-eyed, shoulder-length hair female sixteen year-old didn't wear the black and white striped prison clothes. Rather, she wore a grey and white gingham shirt with a dark green vest over it and had on blue jeans, ripped on the right knee, and brown combat boots.

As soon as the doors opened, she casually walked out, lightly bumping into the guard as she took her leave.

"HEY!" he shouted. Guren didn't stop though. "I said 'hey'!"

Letting out a sigh, she ceased her walk and looked back. "What, Daisuke?"

"Respect your seniors! Apologize for bumping into me!" he demanded, tapping the baton he held in his hand threateningly. However, this was something Guren was use to, and didn't care for threats.

"Or what? You'll lock me up again?" she asked, turning herself to him with a look of 'ignorance to authority', "That's an abuse to your power. It was just a little bump. And I am just a teenager. Surely you're used to seeing teens being disrespectful these days. And yet I don't see any locked up in here. Or do you just love it when I stick around here? Gives you nothing to do but checking out a prisoned girl. Well, at least you're smart for not even trying to do anything to me. Oh, now that I think about it, you're just a guard dog. You can't put me back in the cell unless a higher up says so. And let's not forget that this place is practically a second home to me, considering the number of times I was sent here based on false accusations."

With each word coming out of her mouth, the guard, Daisuke, was fuming in anger. "You know what? I think your mouth could use a little 'discipline'!" he sneered, raising his baton to strike. Before he could follow through with this, another voice called out.

"Attempting to strike a freed civilian without sound reason is a serious crime, Daisuke." The two turned and saw an adult female looking at them. She had long grey hair and reddish-brown eyes and wore a black business suit and a black turtleneck, as well as a necklace, earrings, and a few hair clips above her right ear. She also had a black bag slung over her shoulder.

"I do hope you weren't intending to commit a crime under my watch?" she asked, narrowing her eyes, "I could take you to court for abusing your power." Daisuke gritted his teeth, and dropped his arm, backing away from the woman as she approached Guren, who folded her arms.

"Causing trouble as usual, I see." she asked, "It's a miracle and a wonder why my father kept bailing you out, before I had to do it for the next two year."

"It isn't, Sae," Guren responded. "Your father owes me for what happened to my parents. You're only doing this Makoto's sake. After all, I'm the only friend she has at that school."

Sae sighed, knowing how true that claim was. She didn't know about her dad, but had it be anyone else, she wouldn't look into their case a little deeper and prove their innocence, ironic being that she was a prosecutor.

Since Guren was Makoto's childhood friend, though, she was often begged by her sister to do something as a prosecutor to get her out of prison, to prove that she didn't do what was claimed she had done. How many times did that happened? ... Sae stopped counting after 14.

"Let's just get you out of here and home." With that, the two girls left, leaving Daisuke standing there, gripping the baton, wanting to use it on Guren so badly the next time she came back.

* * *

During the drive back, it was silent between them. Although they only knew each other because of Makoto, it didn't really mean that they were that close to one another. In Sae's eyes, Guren was just a troublemaker of a girl who was always at a wrong place at a wrong time. In Guren's... let's just say that she viewed Sae the same way she viewed most adults in the world. And it wasn't in a respectful way.

"School's starting again soon," Sae spoke at last. All she got in return from Guren was a grunt. "I assume you're going to be a second-year, like Makoto?"

"I end up in prison because I was framed, not because I was stupid enough to do what's illegal," the teen spoke up, as if answering an unasked question.

"So that's a 'yes'?" Guren just grunted, insinuating the answer. Sae sighed at the response. "Sakura, you are a high school student, as well as Makoto's friend. You have to stop getting in these sorts of trouble. My dad and I can't keep bailing you out like this, you know."

"You think I don't know that?" Guren questioned, turning to her, "You think I enjoy being sent to jail for things other people did? You know better than anyone how this world works, Niijima. Many adults out there are causing problems and pointing fingers at others. You saw for yourself back there. Daisuke was definitely going to do something for a small bump."

"Do you think of me as a criminal?" Sae asked, a bit offended with what the teen said.

"I said 'many', not 'all'." she repeated.

That response got out another sigh from the older woman. "If I can make a dollar for every time I sigh because of you, I wouldn't have become a prosecutor."

"Making a joke? At a time like this? I can see your dad doing it, but you?" That got out another sigh from Sae. "Then again, with how often you sigh around me, I suppose that would be true." That got out a chuckle from both of them. They may not be close to one another, but that doesn't mean they don't get along at the very least.

After driving to a parallel parking place next to a small back alley, Sae dropped Guren off close to her uncle's house. "You sure you don't want to a bag of my uncles coffee beans?" Guren asked, "I know you and Makoto like them."

"Thanks, but I don't want to be late." Sae answered, "Be lucky I had time to bail you out when I did." Guren frowned as she gave a side-glanced look to her. "Look, just…try to watch out for trouble." the prosecutor warned her, "I don't like making this a habit."

"Say hi to Makoto for me." Guren answered as she closed the car door, and Sae drove off. _"If only I COULD avoid trouble."_ she mentally added, _"It just leaps into my direction,whether I want it or not."_

As Guren walked in her uncle's coffee shop, called Cafe Leblanc, she was greeted by the sound of the tv news channel, reporting the weather forecast for the day, and the sight of her uncle doing a crossword puzzle and an elderly couple having a cup of coffee each.

At the sound of the door opening, Guren's uncle looked up. "Guren. You're back so soon?" he asked, "I thought for sure you would be back later tonight." he said.

Yes, like Daisuke, Sae, and her father, he was also used to his niece being sent to prison for things she had not done. But can you blame him for the casual greeting? He may be her uncle, but Guren saw him as a dad, with how he took her in since her parents' death when she was young. But that's a story for another time.

"Sae bailed me out again." she told him, sitting down at one of the bar stools, "Seriously, Uncle Sojiro, did you really think that I'll be there that long? After being sent for over like a hundredth time?"

"This does seem like a weekly thing for you." Sojiro exaggerated, putting down the crossword puzzle, "I'd really hope things would change after you entered high school, but even before entering the second year, it still happens. You're lucky the principal is so lenient towards you."

"It's all thanks to my best friend, Makoto." Guren pointed out, "I hear she's in the running for Student Council President. She does have the grades to have that kind of position."

"With a friend like that, I can't help but wonder why you ended up blamed for so many incidents that you just accidentally walk into." Sojiro questioned, walking around the counter to prep some coffee, "Don't you even have instincts that tell you where the trouble is anymore?"

"It's not my fault most adults these days like to do a criminal act and frame others for it." Guren defended, "Even more so, that I just so happen to be there at least twice a month. I mean really, what's up with that? Did I become a magnet for trouble after joining junior high school?"

Sojiro smirked and shook his head. "It surprises me how you still have your sense of humor."

"After being sent to jail for the sixth time, I realized I had to joke about it all." she scoffed, waving off the trouble, "Oh, the irony. 'The Girl That is Guilty of Every Accident She Approaches.' That's what people like to call me nowadays."

The elderly couple both stifled laughs at the exchange between them. "Well, it's good to have you here anyway, Guren." the male elderly spoke.

"Yes indeed. It wouldn't be the same without hearing you play your piano." the female agreed. Guren at least procured a smile from these compliments.

Ah yes. Despite Guren's bad reputation, there was one thing she was good at and took great pride in; she likes to play music. They were mostly anime music, but the way she plays them, it brings joy to everyone's faces, especially with how she gets into the song. If there was one thing Cafe Leblanc was famous for besides its coffee and curry, it was her playing her piano.

"Speaking of, I should start attracting customers." she said, walking up the stairs to the attic.

Mind you, the piano she played wasn't a grand piano; they don't have the kind of money for it. She plays a keyboard piano, in which she won in a music contest a few months before she became a junior high school student.

After she brought it and the stand and bench down, she plugged her instrument in an outlet, close her eyes, tuning everything out, and started playing a song.

 _(Insert: Orpheus by Miyano Mamoru)_

As Guren played, her fingers easily slid through the keys, naturally hitting the right notes. After playing the calm, peaceful piece of the song, it started to get a little upbeat and Guren began nodding along to the song. Seeing her like this, in her peaceful mind, brought smiles on her uncle and customers' faces, enjoying the music being played.

"It's hard to believe someone who plays this well could ever be sent to jail, even if she was framed." the elderly lady said.

"You said it. Look how passionate she is," her husband agreed.

Sojiro also agreed with what they said. For as long as he knew, his niece had quite a passion for music, just like... her parents.

The elderly woman looked at the time on her watch and said, "Oh! Well, look at that. It's time for us to go."

"Oh? Got an appointment?" Sojiro asked.

"Yep. Gotta see the doctor," the elderly man said. "See you guys around, Sojiro. Take care of yourself, Guren." With that, the two left.

Sojiro looked back at his niece and couldn't help but smile at how peaceful she seemed. It was moments like this that made him question how could the world treat such an innocent girl in such a way? How could someone who could play such sweet melodies end up being hardened by thrown into jail over and over again? What did she do to deserve this life? He wasn't sure, but he knew this; Right now, she was in her own little world and nothing could ruin that.

SLAM!

"Man, am I starving!" shouted a rather loud young adult male, surprising the teen to the point where she messed up a key and stopped playing.

 _'And there goes the mood…'_ the Sakuras thought.

Looking to the door, they saw it was a man in his late thirties wearing a red dress shirt with a black blazer over it, black pants and white shoes. The guy had long, dirty blonde hair tied up in a ponytail and a small goatee.

"Hey, old guy! You in charge of this shop? I heard you make awesome curry and great coffee! Get me the spiciest you got and the best black coffee you can make!" he instantly demanded, slamming the door shut, showing no respect at all.

Guren was tempted to kick the guy out of her uncle's shop, but a customer is a customer, no matter how loud or disrespectful they were.

"Sure…?" Sojiro answered, getting started on the guy's order. "Make yourself comfortable."

"Would you like me to play you a song? Any preference?" Guren asked.

Sitting down, the guy thought of something for her to play. "Hmm... Something soft and gentle. Know any like that?"

"Coming right up." With that, Guren played a different song.

 _(Insert: Lost in Thoughts All Alone by Rena Strober)_

As requested, the song being played was a soft and gentle one. Sojiro can already feel his heart being at ease as he worked on the coffee. Just as he was going to the curry though...

"Too slow. Can't you play that a little more upbeat?" the customer requested, waving his hand up like he was brushing away the notes she played.

She stopped playing. Though slightly confused at the sudden change, Guren played the song in a more upbeat version. Not even half a second after it was played, however...

"Too upbeat. Play something different." the customer demanded.

Guren was starting to get slightly annoyed with the sudden change and began to play a different song, hoping it will satisfy him.

 _(Insert: Evidence by DaisyxDaisy)_

At first, he seemed satisfied with the song, even nodding along with it. Halfway through though...

"I'm bored with that one. Play something else!" he demanded.

The sudden change made her misplay a note, as Guren grew a tick mark on her head, as she was slowly losing her patience with this new customer.

Saving her from herself, Sojiro approached the guy with a tray of his spicy curry and black coffee.

"Here's your order. Dig in and enjoy." he said, hoping the guy would at least be satisfied with the food.

"Don't mind if I do! Itadakimasu!" For a moment, Guren relaxed, knowing that her uncle's curry would- "GAAAAHHHH!" -unfortunately have the opposite effect of what they were hoping for. "What the hell is this?! It's too spicy! What? Are you trying to kill me?!"

"What?! But you said you wanted it to be really spicy!" Sojiro defended, surprised at his sudden accusation.

Ignoring the owner of the cafe, the customer took a sip of the coffee... only to spit it out. "Oh shit! That's hot! And bitter!"

"It's black coffee. Of course it's hot and bitter," the teen argued, standing on her feet, trying real hard not to throw a punch at him.

"I thought this place makes great coffee! The hell is this shit?!" the customer demanded.

"Now hold up! You can't blame me for getting you this order! You asked for your curry to be the spiciest and asked for black coffee!" Sojiro retorted.

"Ugh! Is this how you treat all your customers?!" the customer questioned, glaring at him in a way that was mysteriously sinister, "That's sick! I'll sue this cafe!"

"And what fool is going to take your word for it? Everyone in this neighborhood knows about Sojiro's shop and us! They will counter all your false claims!" Guren exclaimed.

The guy, though, gave a snort. "You don't know who I am, do you?" he asked, "Of all the more reason to sue this place! You don't know a person of importance when you see one! I'm Itsuki Kato! A reporter! One word about this place and the whole country will know! Your business will go down!"

Hearing that shocked them. "You can't do that! Cafe Leblanc is the only thing that gives us the support we need!" Guren shouted, stomping over to confront him face-to-face, "This place is more than just a café to us! It's a place where we express ourselves. Our talents, like Sojiro's fantastic cooking, or the love of music I inherited from my parents. You…just CAN'T shut this place down!"

"But I will." Itsuki sneered, taking out a planner and waving it in Guren's face, "My schedule is currently full with other news report that should be done for this week, but I can add in a report about this shop. And maybe this will teach you a lesson on how to not be cocky! But... I'm a reasonable man. I don't just sue shops without giving them second chances. If you can pay me say... 5,000,000 yen before the seven days fly by, I'll let this go."

He walked around Guren, who was seething with rage. Before either of them could say anything against him, Itsuki turned to them as he opened the door and said, "Sayonara, Cafe Lebaka!" and left the shop.

Guren and Sojiro were both left speechless with what had occurred. To say they were furious was an understatement, especially for one of them, as Guren kicked the bar stool he sat at down. "You have to be kidding me." she shouted. "One week! At least one full week without ANY sort of trouble! Is that too much to ask?!"

"Guren…" Sojiro spoke, only to fall on deaf ears.

The girl didn't hear him and continued shouting. "I mean seriously! I've had enough problems as is! Now this happens! And this?! This is the worst thing that should ever happen!"

"Guren…" Sojiro raised his voice a little.

Guren still didn't hear. "And now because of me, we're going to lose Cafe Leblanc! Even if we put up a sale, we're not going to make that money in time! Even if we do, we'll be broke by then! There has to be something we can-!"

"GUREN!" The girl flinched at her uncle's raised voice and tone. She turned to him, and saw the glare that he was giving, and even more surprised, that it was focused on her. "Go home. Now." he ordered.

"B-But-." she started.

"NOW!" Upon seeing how furious Sojiro was, Guren reluctantly obliged and walked out of the cafe, heading to her apartment near her uncle's place.

* * *

When she arrived at her apartment, the first thing Guren did was go on her computer and look up some high-paying jobs. Unlike most teens, she doesn't live with her uncle, preferring to try and support herself, especially since she didn't want to cause him any more trouble than she already had. Not that that seemed to matter now.

"No…" she muttered, seeing the pay rate of one job, then moving onto the next. Every time she found a job that wouldn't work, she continued to say 'no', her tone getting more and more aggressive. Finally she slammed her fist on the table, causing the pen holder on it to fall to the ground, scattering the pens all across the floor.

"Ugh! Damn it!" the teen shouted, slamming her head down on the table. Tears were starting to form on her face as she asked, "Why…? Why does my life have to be like this? I accepted being a trouble-prone girl, but to drag the people close to me? I... I already distance myself from my uncle and cousin. What more does this world want from me?"

She knew nothing was going to give her the answer she needed or wanted. Likewise, she knew that there was nothing she can do for her relatives, especially not with her reputation. That being said, she didn't know why she bothered looking up on jobs when she knew she wasn't going to be hired by any of them.

A ring tone was heard from her phone. She picked it up and saw it was a message from her cousin.

"Hey. I overheard what happened back at the cafe. Sojiro's really loud when he's upset," it read. How she knew about what happened at Leblanc? Well, Guren knew she placed in a bug that allowed her to hear everything that happened in the shop.

"Is there anything I can do to help? I can sell some of my stuff, or maybe hack into a bank or two and borrow some money." she asked.

Guren's eyes widened in shock when she read what her cousin suggested and instantly texted back. "Futaba, no! Don't do anything unnecessary! You already been through enough trouble!"

"But this is necessary!" came a text back. "I want to do something to help you two! You both helped me, took me in, and tried to get me to open up when…" There was a pause in the text. Of course, Guren knew what she was gonna get at, but it was such a deep-rooted sensitive subject, she never wanted to admit it. The text continued, "Anyways, I want to do something for you guys in return!"

Reading this response, Guren felt touched by Futaba's pure heart. Some time back, her uncle adopted Futaba, mainly because she was the daughter of the woman he fell in love with, and Guren welcomed the girl with open arms, like a little sister she never had. It wasn't easy at first, especially with how her last relative treated her, but she managed to form a bond with the shy, sheltered girl.

"I know you want to help, Futaba. I do," she replied. "But this isn't your problem. Just leave this to your adopted dad and your cousin."

"Says the girl who was always sent to jail for things she didn't do." the text bluntly pointed out, "If it wasn't for me finding evidence for all the tough crimes you were accused of, you wouldn't ever be out of prison."

Guren couldn't help but chuckle at how true that was. Her adopted cousin was quite the hacker. Some of the wrongdoings that were pointed at her seemed too true to be from anyone else, no matter how many times she told the court they were false. Thanks to Futaba, though, her innocence was proven, but that didn't stop the rumors about her, nor did it stop other troubles from getting to her.

"I promise you. Uncle Sojiro and I will figure out what to do. Don't worry about a thing, Futaba. Okay?" she texted.

It took several seconds for her cousin to send a reply back, saying, "... Okay, Guren."

Now at ease that her cousin wouldn't do anything rash for them, Guren let out a relieved sigh. As close as she was with Futaba, there were limits. Recently, though, she had been more of a shut-in than ever. What was even more startling was how she even avoided Guren and Sojiro more. The only way she could contact her was through text messages. Even though half the time, she was bombarded with subjects that Guren had no clue about, nor how they got to those subjects before, she missed the time she had with her niece. At least this was better than no contact at all.

 _'I want to listen to some music,'_ she then thought, hoping that her one escape will calm her and help her figure out a way to help her uncle.

As soon as she exited her chatroom app, she raised a brow in confusion at one other app on her home page. It was red with a weird, black, star-pupiled eye.

"I don't remember having this," she said out loud. She tapped the app to see what it was, only to see it was a sort of navigation app.

 _'A navigation app? That's not going to help me,'_ she thought, deciding to head to bed instead of listening to her music, not even bothering to change in a sleepwear with the stress she was starting to feel.

As she lied down, she thought back to the events back at Cafe Leblanc. "I wish there was a way to stop Itsuki Kato. That stupid, big baby, was acting like he was a ruler of a monarchy. And now thanks to him and his overdramatic deception, once the news is up, there'll be no Cafe Leblanc. Uncle Sojiro will have to try to start a new business or be hired somewhere. but who's to say he won't make sure my uncle won't get a job. And me? I can't get a job no matter how hard I try. Not in Yongen-Jaya, not in Tokyo, or any part of Japan. Or...any part of the world…" Turning to the side, slowly letting sleep overtake her, the last things she said was, "I wish... I can do something to stop people like him from getting what they want."

Unknown to her, as she said all of those things, the navigation app on her phone recorded a certain few things. The words 'Itsuki Kato', 'ruler of a monarchy', 'deceiving', and 'Jongen-Yaga' flashed through it. There seemed to be a sort of distortion in the air, which caused Guren to moan at a slight headache. "RESULTS FOUND. BEGINNING NAVIGATION." the app spoke, and the distortions started to get stronger.

* * *

The next day, Guren woke to the sound of her alarm ringing on her phone. Turning it off, she got up from bed and got ready to start the day.

 _'I wonder if I can at least start applying to some jobs,'_ was the first thing that came to mind. _'I should get started.'_

Getting out of bed, Guren, not in the mood to have breakfast, went out to find any place in Shibuya that was hiring. The second she walked out though, she noticed something was wrong. The apartment building was in the back alley, yes, but it seemed more empty than usual. Usually at this time, there should've been some people wandering around. Snow covered the ground, some of it dirty from the…wait, why was there snow on the ground? It was spring. Snow should be long gone, now.

 _'What was going on? Was this a dream?'_ She pinched herself, trying to wake from her dream. She felt the pain, but the scene was still there. This was real. "What the hell is going on?" she asked, "Did I end up on some sort of movie set? How could something like this be made overnight?"

She looked about again, wondering what the heck did she step into. However, she wasn't one to back out when curiosity struck her. It was mainly the reason she got into trouble so much. She stepped off the steps of her apartment, and her feet sank in the snow, which was only an inch deep.

She walked down the street, wondering why all the shops, which were so busy in the daytime, wound up closed, and some of them even boarded shut. "This just can't be right." she told herself, "This just had to be a dream. A very…realistic dream…" She looked behind her, and found something else that surprised her. All the footsteps in the snow that she made suddenly disappeared the moment she removed her foot from them. "This is just…too weird." she muttered, and she moved along, trying to make sense out of the situation.

After a while, she noticed some homeless people in the street. As she continued walking, she noticed the number grow and grow and began to take notice of some familiar faces.

 _'Don't these guys work in some of the shops around here?!'_ she realized. When she looked at an alley ahead, she stopped in her tracks and let out a gasp.

"Uncle! Futaba!" Huddled around a small campfire were her uncle and adopted cousin, both in rags with miserable looks on their faces. She rushed to their side. "Guys! What happened to you two?!"

Sojiro looked up, eyes seemingly lifeless, lacking any hope in them. They slightly widened when they landed on her. "Wha-...? Guren? What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean 'what am I doing here'?" she echoed, completely bewildered by this, "Why are you both in rags? Why aren't you home?!" The last question was directed specifically towards Futaba, whom had agoraphobia.

The girl looked up at the rebel teen. "Guren…?" Tears started to form in her eyes as she suddenly jumped and hugged the older girl. "Guren! I don't want to die!"

Hearing that shocked Guren. _'Why is she thinking she's going to die?'_

Trumpet sounds were heard and every homeless tensed. Futaba stopped crying and froze in fear, in which her cousin noticed.

"W-What? What's going on?" she asked.

"He's here…" Sojiro uttered out.

Guren looked and followed everyone's eyes to a group of men, all in black suits and masks equipped with black shades attached, surrounding someone as they walked down the streets.

"Bow down to the great king, you mongrels!" one of them shouted.

Immediately, all the people were on their knees and lowered their heads, as a royal carriage suddenly appeared on the street, pulled by, to disgust, the same kind of homeless people Guren saw. She bowed her head in order to avoid trouble, but was still appalled by the homeless pulling the carriage who, after they stopped, fell to their knees and panted in exhaustion. _"What a horrible way to treat people!"_ Guren thought to herself, _"I wanna see who this 'great king' is, who considers this right!"_

The door to the carriage opened up, with steps that folded down to the snow-cloaked ground. Guren looked up at who it was, and she was shocked to see Itsuki Kato come out. Only, it was not the same man she saw before. He dressed in garments that made him a wealthy king, including a shining blue cape with a white-fur trimming, a staff with a headpiece that was an eyeball with a dollar symbol in it, and a crown that was gold and blue. What was also off about him was that he had glowing yellow eyes.

' _What the hell?!'_ she thought. As much as she wanted to shout out the many other questions she had, she had a feeling things will go south real fast if she did and kept silence.

The men in suits clapped their hands, and suddenly, more homeless people appeared, rolling out a red carpet for him to walk across as to not soil his feet on the snow. He walked with a smug smile on his face, not even waving to the crowd, but moving as a spoiled rick kid would.

 _"What the ef is going on here?!" Guren wondered in horror, "This is no dream. It's a freakin' nightmare! Why is that Itsuki guy dressed as a king? Why is everyone serving him like this?! This makes no effin' sense! Things shouldn't be like this! If it's not a dream or a movie set, then what the hell did I just step into? A reality of horror?!"_

Suddenly, there was a cough, and Itsuki stopped, frowning as he turned to the source. All heads turned and saw it was a child coughing heavily. A woman, most likely the mother, was trying to comfort him.

"Well what do we have here?"" Itsuki spoke. As he did, Guren couldn't help but notice how different his voice was. "A sick child?"

The mother instantly paled as he said that. "P-Please have mercy on him! It's just a slight cold."

"A... 'slight cold'? Looks more like he has a flu." he stated.

"P-Please, my liege. He's just a boy with a small cold!" the mother begged.

As she watched the exchange, Guren clutched her fist, trying hard not to lash out.

"You're right. He is a boy." Hearing those words coming out of his mouth in such a calm manner, the teen calmed slightly. "You there. Take out the book." Itsuki gestured to one of his men, whom did as asked. "Was there anything on flus?"

"There's a small list of some deadly ones. Some people died from them." he answered, his voice just as eerie as Itsuki.

Itsuki nodded along with the description. A look of realization formed on his face. "I remember you now. Didn't I threaten that I will make a false report about you? It was for something you did. What was it? What did I say I will say?" The second he mentioned making false reports, Guren looked up at him with a glare.

The woman trembled in fear at the question. Hesitantly, she answered, "I owned a small flower shop and was helping you find some flowers. A few bees came to gather pollen and spooked you. You said you'll make a report on how my shop is full of bees waiting to stab people if I don't pay you ransom."

Guren's eyes widened in shock at the story, gritting her teeth in sheer anger towards Itsuki, wondering how low the guy will go to ruin someone's life.

The deceptive 'king' didn't notice the teen's glare. "Ah yes. That's right. And if I recall, the you in the other world has a son currently sick as well, isn't he? And last I saw the other you, you were still looking for a job."

The former florist looked up at him in fear, knowing what he was going to do next. "No... Please, don't!"

"How's this for a report? A desperate woman sells her own son's organs for cash! That will ruin you for sure!" Itsuki said with a sick grin.

"Please, you can't do this! He's my only son!" the woman pleaded, crawling on her knees, begging for mercy.

"I can and I will. Besides, I don't want to catch whatever he's having." Turning to his men, he ordered, "Someone get a gun and put him out of his misery. The woman, too, if she interferes."

"No! Don't!" The mother instantly shielded her son as a few men pointed their guns at them. Enough was enough for Guren.

"HEY!" All heads turned to the standing, furious teen. "Leave them alone, you over-drama queen!" At that insult, everyone let out gasps in great shock, all wondering if she was crazy for doing such a crime.

Itsuki turned to where Guren stood, which was a good distance back, closer to the carriage, and asked, "What did you call me?"

"You heard what I said! Leave them alone!" Guren repeated, glaring at him with a look that could kill.

"And who are you to tell me what to do, girl?" The sick reporter demanded, walking back the way he came, narrowing his eyes and realized who Guren was. "Wait... Aren't you that problem child that's always sent to jail? It's a wonder how you keep getting out. You were sent there for a reason, after all."

"Yeah, cause I'm always getting accused of things I was never part of!" Guren answered, stepping in the middle of the street to confront the man before her, "But based on what I see, it seems like you're better off behind bars! What the hell is up with all of this, anyway?!"

"This is my world. I can do what I want here." Itsuki answered smugly, "You, on the other hand, shouldn't be here. Seems like prison is just not enough for you. It'll be better off for everyone if you just didn't live anymore."

Guren clenched her fists so hard, her nails drew blood on her palms. "All you do is talk and talk and talk. Do you even hear yourself?! Just because you're a reporter doesn't give you the right to ruin people's lives?! It does NOT give you the right to spread lies when you see fit! You think just because you're a reporter, you can just get rid of people you hate? Get rid of people who had done nothing wrong?! You're even sicker than I thought you were! In fact, you're even worse than all the other adults that pushed their wrongdoings on me! And I am sick and tired of people like you getting their way!"

Itsuki let out a fake yawn. "And you're saying I'm the one talking too much. You're just a simple criminal who talks big because she thinks the truth is on her side. Give it up. The people who are too naive to look for the truth themselves make it easy for me to fictionalize the truth for them. You are just the fall-guy in life for those who want to get away from the horrible truths of what they done. It's easy to pin the blame on weak little children like you, and get away scot-free. And yet, here you are, standing there, with such arrogance to against me, the king. Men, kill her!"

The men in black-visor masks raced over to where Guren stood, surrounding her, raising flint-lock rifles at her, ready to fire. The crowd escaped in a frenzy, including Guren's uncle and niece, to avoid any more attacks onto them. Guren looked around her, seeing the situation she was in, yet was too angry at Itsuki to run or avoid any attack.

"Arrogance?! You're one to talk! So what if people consider me a criminal? So what if people consider me a fall-guy?! It's my fault being in those situations in the first place. However, this is one kind of trouble I refuse to walk away from, no matter who pleads for me to do so. One way or another, I am going to put an end to people like you, you damn bastard!"

The moment she said those last words, it was almost as though time stopped, as a voice came to her head. " **That's the way to do it.** " The next thing she knew, she felt what may be the worst headache of all times. She gripped her head, holding back screams of pain as she struggled to stay on her feet. " **This world blames you for many crimes others commit. How long do you intend to endure the blame? How long will you have those fingers point at you, and you alone? Your inner self desires the rage you held back to be unleashed on the true culprits of the world.** "

Guren stumbled and hit the ground, one hand holding her head, while the other hand grabbed a small rock sticking out of the snow. She gritted her teeth as she grasped the rock, and with newfound strength, broke it in her hands. " **Let us seal a contract. I am thou. Thou art I. Like a wolf in sheep's clothing, or rather a lion, unveil yourself to the world, hungry for justice! Shout my name, and I shall shout the names of the true culprits!** "

Guren stood back up to her feet again, curling her fists tight, growling like a beast ready to strike. She raised her head to Itsuki as something formed on the top half of her face; a lion mask, the face silver and the mane bronze. Unknown to Guren as she glared at Itsuki once more, her eyes became as yellow as his.

The guy in question had a fearful look on his face, as he quickly shouted out, "What are you waiting for? Kill her! Kill her now!" The men that surrounded Guren ignited the flint on their guns, and fired.

Before the bullets hit, it was almost as if they slowed down in midair. She took one hand, and ripped the mask off in one fell swoop, tearing off some skin as she did so, crying out in pain. Blue flames engulfed her body, protecting her from the kill shots.

As the flames died down, Itsuki and the soldiers were shocked to see Guren standing there, wearing new attire that was different from before. The main uniform had the look of an elegant, yet fearsome soldier, sort of medieval. It was mainly black, with bronze-yellow trimmings and patterns about it. She wore a skirt underneath that was the same bronze-yellow color, black leggings boots, bronze gloves with black sleeves almost reaching her elbow, and a yellow lion's tail poking behind her attire. Holstered on a belt wrapping around her midriff was a scabbard, which held a rapier.

Standing behind her was something human-like, yet not at all. It seemed like a knight with long, wild yellow hair flowing out of its helmet, and had a red cape on. In its hand was a large sword, almost five times its height. By its side was what seemed like a black lion, letting out a fearsome roar.

"What the hell is this?!" Itsuki gasped, panicking at the sight of Guren's new look.

"Now it's time to put you in your place!" Guren shouted. "Let's show them our power, Alanna!"


	3. The Shadow Runners Rise Again!

**Another new chapter, going back to Haneru and Mia! This time, it will bring in more backstory, more drive to change Oda's heart, and more new twists I hope you will never expect. Enjoy!**

* * *

 _(Opening: Life will Change (Persona 5))_

 **(Music intro)**

 _(Starting in a backdrop of a city with gray and black buildings and a red sky, the camera pans through the place, while the white shadows of eleven individuals racing and leaping passed walls. Then the words 'I am thou. Thou art I' form in cryptic newspaper letter cutouts, followed by the title of the series)_

 **It's not a game. I'm not a robot AI challenging you.**

 _(Ren Amamiya steps out of Leblanc, heading to school, with Morgana in his bag. Guren Sakura joins his side as they both leave, and the screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Theives looks, with the names 'Joker' 'Mona' and 'Lioness' under their respective people.)_

 **I'm not a phantom. I'm in your face and I'm here to see it through.**

 _(Mia puts on her shoes as she heads to work, with Haneru racing up behind her, dislodging his slippers and putting on his shoes to go to school. He waves his mom goodbye as the both open the door to walk out. Screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Thieves looks, with the names 'Kong' and 'Pixie' under each of them.)_

 **Right before your eyes, watch us multiply**

 _(Ryuji, Ann, and a silhouetted figure appear in three parts of the screen, then, with a flip of their respective confidant tarot cards, changing into their respective Phantom Thieves attire, with 'Skull' and 'Panther' listed to their respective owners.)_

 **Come to claim our rights - it's time**

 _(Three more silhouettes appear of the three remaining members, which shift to silhouettes of them in their Phantom Thieves outfits like the others.)_

 **As our power grows, trying to stop us shows…**

 _(Inside the interrogation room, Ren looks to Sae Nijima, who glares seriously at him, while she has pictures of victims he and the Phantom Thieves targeted on the table. Ren sees a sparkling blue butterfly pass his eyes, and he closes his eyes)_

 **(You) Might as well go try'n stop time**

 _(In the velvet room, the camera pans through the bars of the cell, past the twin prison wardens to Igor in his seat. He looks up at the protagonist with his usual grin, and the Metaverse Navigation app button appears behind him as he fades away, and the app activates.)_

 **(Song break)**

 _(From an overhead view of the central street of Tokyo, the area starts to shift as it changes to the Metaverse point of view. Tarot cards of every confidant fall down to the ground in the middle of the big street, where the Phantom Thieves stand, ready to go.)_

 **So you know that we're out there, swatting lies in the making.**

 _(Joker leads off summoning Arsene to his side, readying his dagger as he lunges at a masked Shadow, pulling it off and slashing at it. Lioness leaps in, stopping a pair of unknown Shadows with her rapier and stabbing them through the chest with a pair of thrusts.)_

 **Can't move fast without breaking. Can't hold on or life won't change.**

 _(Kong leap onto a head of a Shadow, whacking him in the back with his quarterstaff, knocking him to the ground before turning his staff into swords and making a falling stab onto him. Pixie uses Magaru with a twirl of her scythe, blowing away a bunch of Shadows. All four Persona users draw their guns out, pointing at four Shadows in the center of their circle, and fire at them.)_

 **And our voices ring out, yeah. Took the mask off to feel free.**

 _(Mona in van mode drives the known thieves, with Pixie at the wheel, as they journey through Mementos. They encounter a bunch of the main Shadow versions of human enemies, each transforming into large silhouettes of their respective monster forms, their eyes glowing.)_

 **Fought it out in the debris, now we know that life will change.**

 _(Mona transforms to normal as they all leap up into the air, Joker, Lioness and Kong taking off their masks to reveal their Personas, ready to attack.)_

 **(Music ending)**

 _(The scene shifts to several of their supporters doing their routines, from Sojiro running the Leblanc, to Mishima walking while looking at the Phan-Site on his phone, Akechi being interviewed on television, Takemi writing something at her clinic, to Kawakami teaching her class, Mifune flipping her tarot cards, then flipping over a calling card made by the Phantom Thieves. The scene shifts to a red and black, spiraling backdrop as the card along with all confidant cards fall into an abyss, replaced with the title of the series again.)_

* * *

 _(Previously on Persona 5: Phantom Drive)_

 _"Wh-What is this power?!" Oda gasped, stepping back as the archer soldiers stepped forward to protect their Lord._

 _The soldier who held Mia down, along with the others beside it, stepped back, also scared. Mia stood up on her feet, looking wide-eyed at her son. "Incredible…" she muttered, witnessing the power her son was exerting, "He…became a Persona user!"_

 _"I won't keep living my life wishing to be a hero." Haneru growled, twirling his weapon, placing it in both hands, "It's time I make that dream come true, and it starts by punishing you, Oda!" He pulled the staff on either end, splitting it in half to reveal hidden blades inside. "Sasuke, let's go!"_

* * *

Haneru made a mad dash at Oda, but his guards got in the way, with one of them firing an arrow. Haneru dodged to one side easily, and made a cross slash at the soldier, knocking him down to the ground.

"You're gonna pay for that!" one of them roared, and in an instant, they suddenly turned into some sort of black and red muck, which merged together to form two floating creatures with jack-o-lanterns for heads and a lit lantern in one hand.

"Out of the way!" Haneru roared, reverting his swords to the quarterstaff form, and smacking one of the monsters out of the way, making it hit the ground. The other creature charged in and intended to whack Haneru with the lantern, only for Sasuke to interfere with his attack.

" **You mustn't be reckless. Utilize my powers onto thy enemies.** " Sasuke told Haneru, " **Utilize the rebellious hatred in your heart, and make it your power!** "

Haneru nodded in understanding, and concentrated. He started to feel it; the rage that manifested, and unleashed it in full force. " **Zio!** " he roared, waving his hand forward. Sasuke clashed his blades together, creating sparks that turned into an electric current, which shot at the enemy like a bolt of lightning, shocking the target. This knocked the enemy down, making the creature vanish into nothingness.

"Cool…" Haneru muttered, then sensed the other creature get back up, and nearly avoided getting hit by flames it exerted from its' lantern.

" **Channel your own strength into power, and unleash thyself onto the target."** Sasuke ordered.

Haneru gritted his teeth as he felt a bit of his own stamina leave him, channeling it into his Persona. " **Cleave!** " Haneru roared, and Sasuke used his swords to slash the creature, eliminating it like the other one.

Once they were done, Haneru turned to Oda, who backed off as the soldiers that held his mother down before came to either side of him. Sasuke vanished into blue flames, which formed into the mask that Haneru pulled off before.

"You little brat. How dare you!" he sneered, his yellow eyes narrowing at him in anger.

"Oh…I dare…" Haneru panted, keeping himself up with his staff.

"Heh! Looks like you can barely stand." Oda noticed, seeing the condition Haneru was in, "It's just as I predicted; You're all talk, but no action in the end."

Mia was worried as the soldiers readied themselves to fight Haneru, who looked too tired to put up a more decent fight than now. He needed time to recover in order to understand his powers, and everything else about the Metaverse.

Looking down, she noticed the naginata she had dropped, and picked it up. She then raised it high, and threw it like a javelin. It struck one of the soldiers, getting Haneru's and the other's attention.

"Haneru! We have to leave, now!" she ordered him.

"But, what about Oda?!" he demanded.

"Right now, you're too fatigued from awakening your Persona. We have to get back to the real world, now!"

Haneru paused for a second, accepting her words to be true, and raced towards the entrance, with Mia grabbing him and helping him out.

"Go ahead. Run!" Oda barked, "There's no way you can escape me in reality. And you don't even stand a ghost of a chance defeating me here! Face it! It's a no-win scenario for you two!" He laughed heartily as Haneru grimaced at his words.

As soon as they were a good distance away from the palace, Mia asked, "Let me have your phone. Maybe I can use that app you found to get us back to reality."

Haneru nodded in response, and pulled out the phone from his pocket. As he did so, he realized the change in his attire. "Wha-what is this?" he asked, looking down himself, then touching his mask, "What's with this look? Did I make some sort of transformation?"

"I'll explain it to you when we return home." Mia told Haneru, examining the app, "There we go!" She tapped a button on it, and the world started to distort before their eyes. After a short while of standing through the shifting distortion, they found themselves on the familiar street at nighttime near Mr. Oda's house, which was back to it's two-story complex.

"Everything's back to normal?" Haneru asked, looking about.

"YOU HAVE RETURNED TO THE REAL WORLD. WELCOME BACK." the navigation voice spoke on his phone.

"It worked." Mia sighed in relief, looking at Mr. Oda's house, "Still, to think that we actually were in the Metaverse. And more importantly…" she looked to her son, who still looked worn out, "You just unlocked a Persona."

"My…Persona?" Haneru asked, confused.

After a moment's pause, Mia said, "We should head back home. I'll fix you something to regain your stamina." She walked Haneru back as the boy wondered what the heck did he just go through, and how did she know so much about where they were before.

* * *

About an hour later, Haneru and Mia were at their dinner table with microwave-cooked ramen and soda for supper. Once they settled down, however, Haneru first asked, "So…you gonna tell me what just happened?"

Mia took a drink from her soda before starting, "It is as I told you before; Thanks to that app on your phone, we wound up in the Metaverse, an area created by the distorted desires of people. Those with strong distorted desires like Mr. Oda can make a place like what we saw before. Those are known as Palaces."

"Yeah, that part I still don't really get." Haneru pointed out, "I mean, you said all sorts of stuff about 'cognitions' and 'distorted desires', but I still don't get it. Like, why was Mr. Oda's house suddenly a grand palace? And why was he looking that way before? And that woman who looked like you?"

"From his point of view, Oda considers his home to be a place of grandeur among this part of town." Mia explained, "He sees himself as a superior ruler who can rule others with his level of authority. I assume he thought himself like Nobunaga Oda, a famous feudal lord."

"Yeah. I know about that. I mean, he was one of the most powerful lords in the Warring States Era." Haneru understood. He may suck at history, but he at least knew that. Characters from the Warring States Era were used in many anime he had seen.

"Exactly. As such, his distorted desires became so strong, that it manifested into the place we were in before. That is why his home was like that, and that he was a feudal lord. As for my look-a-like, it is merely a cognition. A life-like doll made by how he views me as."

"Okay…I think I understand all that." Haneru responded, "But what about what I did? You said I produced that Persona, Sasuke. I don't even know how I did it, though."

"It was because you were rebelling against Oda." Mia explained, "You know the mask you wore? Everyone wears a mask to hide their true selves in their heart. A rebellious spirit to society, you could say. However, by 'removing' this mask, they are able to manifest their other selves to fight in the Metaverse. These are known as Personas."

"So I unlocked that part of me just because…I was rebellious?" Haneru questioned, confused.

"In a way, yes." Mia answered, "You sought out freedom from Oda's restrain on us, and that allowed you to unlocked your power. Tell me, what were your thoughts before you had that headache?"

Haneru paused for a second, then answered, "All I was thinking about was punishing Oda for what he did to me. He hated me because I was like my father, and he tried to pin me down so as I could obey him. He was being so cruel to you and I, and for such petty reasons, that I couldn't take it anymore. I didn't care if I was a hero or a villain. I wanted to fight him."

"I see…" Mia understood, hearing her son's words. To him, Haneru was more like his father, and that was what worried her the most.

After a moment, the young otaku asked, "Mom, how do you know so much about that place? About the Shadows and Personas and whatnot? It's something I never heard of before."

"That's to be expected, since very few know of the Metaverse's existence." Mia sighed, pausing for a second to put what she had to say into words, then answered, "The reason I knew so much about that place was because I once wielded a Persona, just like your father."

"What?" Haneru asked, shocked to hear this.

"It was around your age when we awoke to them." Mia explained, "Back then, we didn't have apps that brought us to the Metaverse. Instead, we were given notepads with similar powers." She looked back on those days in high school, recalling the pocket journal her husband gained, which had the same logo as the app on Haneru's smartphone, "It must've worked similarly to the app, only we wrote down the necessary things to get into a person's Palace; the name of a person, what sin are they committing, where it is, and how they view that place in their cognition."

"Just like on the app…" Haneru realized, looking down at his smartphone, seeing the app, "It placed in 'Mr. Oda', 'manipulation', 'his house', and 'Palace in a village'."

"Your father was the first to gain the power to wield a Persona." Mia continued, "He was also a gifted Persona user, known as the 'Trickster'."

"Trickster?" Haneru echoed.

"Including his own, he could wield multiple Personas at once, something that the rest of us who were with him couldn't do." Mia continued, "You see, there was more than just him and I who could use Personas. We had six other friends, as well. Outcasts from society who, like us, chose to rebel against the tyranny of those who others couldn't stop. Together, we became known as the Shadow Break; People who stole the hearts of those who hide their crimes in the shadows, making them change and confess their crimes."

"Wait, what?" Haneru echoed, hearing the last sentence, "You 'stole' the hearts of people? And you made them confess their crimes? How did you do that?"

Mia didn't answer, but looked down with a very hesitant look. If she told him how they could steal the hearts of people, she was pretty much telling him to go into the Metaverse again, when she really wanted him to not go there at all.

"Mom, how were you able to make someone confess their crimes?" Haneru asked again, "Can it be done to Oda, as well?"

"…It can…" she answered, then quickly added, "…But I can't let you do that."

"Why not?" Haneru asked, confused, "If we can make him confess, he might let us move without any problems, right? This HAS to be why I was given this app! We can set things right!"

"I won't allow you to go back there again." Mia told Haneru seriously, "It is way to risky."

"But the risk is worth it if we can-." Haneru started.

"I SAID NO!" Mia shouted to him, scaring him into silence. After a moment's pause, Mia looked down shamefully as she followed up, "Sorry. I don't mean to be angry at you. It's just…it's because of the Metaverse that you lost your father, and that all my other friends are either gone or dead."

This bit of news shocked Haneru. "Dad is…dead?" he asked.

"No…at least, I hope not." Mia answered, looking up at him, "He went missing when you were very young. I tried to search for him, but…I couldn't just leave you behind. I waited for him to return from the Metaverse, but he never did. Neither did four of our friends that joined him. I couldn't leave you to search for him, since you were so young. My two other friends tried to keep in touch with me if they heard any news, but within the past two years, they died."

Haneru looked down at his ramen, which was getting cold. He had no idea about any of this. This explained why his mom was so serious about him deleting the app. She didn't want to risk the life of another person close to her. She seemed so kind and caring before, hiding the pain of losing those close to her deep down. From what he could also see, this made her afraid of the Metaverse, and the darkness within.

"Haneru, please let me have your smartphone." Mia asked him, reaching a hand out to him, "I know you want to stop Oda, but I can't let you go into the Metaverse again. I'm sure I can find a way to reason with him, so you don't have to worry."

Haneru looked down at the app, closing his eyes for a moment, then handed it over to his mom, pressing the button to make the screen go black. For the moment, it was best to just listen to his mom. He cared for her a lot to not disobey her.

"Thanks." she thanked him, "Now get some rest. I need your help packing tomorrow." Haneru understood, and walked into his room, closing the door behind him.

Mia stood there, looking at the phone in her hand. As she looked, a teardrop fell from her eyes. She was crying. "Why…why did he have to have this power, too?" Mia sobbed, "Why is everything coming back to haunt me again? How…could you…?"

Inside his room, Haneru laid back on his bed again, looking at the ceiling. So much happened in such a short amount of time. _'The Metaverse…'_ he pondered, _'It was such a crazy place, not to mention seeing Oda from a different point of view. But more importantly, I managed to gain powers in that world. I…became just like an anime hero!'_

Despite the fear and terror he experienced, his mom's warnings and her history with it involving his father, Haneru couldn't help but smile eagerly. It was so cool, and it was something he wanted to pursue even further at. However, because of her mom, he decided to hold back for the moment. It was best that he didn't start any trouble for her.

He closed his eyes, and went to sleep, exhausted from the things he endured. Even so, he had a good dream. He was fighting alongside his Persona, defeating the soldiers, and taking down Mr. Oda.

* * *

 **March 24**

The next morning, the two had a silent breakfast. Afterwards, Haneru went into his room, and started putting things away. However, after a moment, he stopped, with Oda's warning on his mind. The fear of the guy who blackmailed them still hung in his mind, and the Shadow of the man he met in the other world also appeared in his mind, with his threats to kill Haneru. However, with that came the truth of him framing Haneru for the damage on his house months ago. He was so angry at him for that, that he wanted payback. He wished to use that app on his smartphone again.

He decided to shake that off for the moment, and decide to do something else; look into his Persona. "So it was Sasuke, right?" Haneru asked himself, tapping away at the computer in his room, looking up characters with the name 'Sasuke' in it. Immediately, the first result was an anime anti-hero with the same name, but he dismissed it. The character didn't feel like it was the same as the Persona.

It took a while, but he found someone that struck a chord with his heart. "Sarutobi Sasuke." Haneru read, seeing the picture of an anime adaptation of the character, "According to history, he was the leader of the Sanada Ten Braves, who assisted the warlord Sanada Yukimura at the battles of Osaka Castle. Was well known for his monkey-like agility and quickness."

He leaned back on his chair, looking at the ceiling. "Now that I think about it, he did seem pretty skilled with those weapons, and I could use lightning with him. Although…" He recalled his look, which looked like a ninja crossed with something that looked like the pictures of Sun Wukong online, "That look was pretty interesting. A combo of Japanese and Chinese folklore. I did like that look. It suited me pretty well."

Just then, he heard the doorbell, and heard his mother calling out that she would get it. Haneru poked his head out of his room, and saw the door open to reveal Nikolo at the door.

"Yo, Haneru." he greeted the otaku, "I tried calling you, but you didn't answer your phone."

"Er…" Haneru started, not sure how to explain, but his mother stepped in, "My apologies, but I took Haneru's phone away for a moment. He stumbled into an inappropriate website, so I took it from him for the moment."

"Seriously?!" Nikolo questioned, looking at his friend, "That's not like you, man."

"I…!" Haneru started, looking at her mother, who looked back, shaking her head at him. He couldn't tell him about the app, or anything else involved with it. "I…didn't mean to open it up." he sighed, "It was an accident."

"Well, guess I won't get into any deeper than that." Nikolo stated, "Wanna hang out at my place? My parents are off at work, so it should be okay."

Haneru looked down, then smiled and nodded in understanding. Ever since the incident, Nikolo's parents didn't like him hanging around at their place when they were home, so he was only invited there when his friend's parents weren't around. It was a sad feeling, but one he couldn't avoid. Although now, after the Metaverse…

"You should get going, Haneru." Mia told him, "You should spend time with Nikolo before we leave."

"But, what about…?" He started, but his mother interrupted him.

"I'll go to Mr. Oda, and talk about the terms of leaving, okay?" she assured him, smiling sweetly at him, "We'll make things work out." Haneru looked puzzled at this. Surely, even she couldn't change Oda's mind. He lusted over his mother, and hated him. The words he said, in both worlds, told him that there was no compromising with him.

Nikolo looked at both of them, confused and concerned, then asked, "Is…everything okay?"

"N-No…everything is fine." Haneru assured him walking past his mother to join his friend at the door, "Let's go to your place, then."

"Alright…" Nikolo answered, finding the whole situation awkward. With one final look to one another, Haneru closed the door behind him, leaving Mia alone.

For a while, she didn't move. She reached up to her face, placing fingertips around her eyes, brushing them down to her chin. It was as if she was trying to take off a mask over her eyes. A mask she wore a long time ago, which now resided in her heart, once again.

* * *

Around midday, Haneru was playing a fighting game with Nikolo, but due to his mind being distracted, his win-loss ratio was against the otaku.

"Jeez, you really must be out of it if you are failing this badly." Nikolo stated, putting down his controller and looking at his friend, "Did screwing up and getting into trouble with your mom make you suffer this badly?"

"It's not that…" Haneru answered, looking down at the controller in his hands.

"Well then, what is it?" Nikolo asked, "Dude, you and I are good friends. You should tell me if something's up."

Haneru looked at him, thinking. Despite what his mom, or anyone else said, if there was someone outside of his family he could trust, it was him. He may mock him or poke fun at him from time to time, but the two were really good friends, especially since middle school. In fact, he might've been the only friend he had, since others couldn't tolerate his otaku nature and his lack of social skills. So he had to tell him, or at least, make up something to tell him the truth. After all, that other world was both unbelievable, and dangerous.

"Well…I found something out about Oda…" he started.

 **A few minutes later…**

"WHAT?!" Nikolo gasped, "Oda is blackmailing you and your mom, wanting you to leave and not her?!" Haneru nodded. "And he caused the damage on his own house before just out of spite for you?!" Another nod. "And he forced other people to be eye-witnesses to blame you for the crime?!"

"That's pretty much the gist of it." Haneru answered. He avoided telling anything that could lead him to talking about the Metaverse, but instead stated that he overheard Mr. Oda talking while drunk.

Nikolo looked down at the floor, thinking. "Come to think of it…that all makes sense." he muttered.

"What do you mean?" Haneru asked.

"From that point on, my mom started to avoid Mr. Oda as much as she could. It was as if she was afraid of him for some reason."

"Well, I know nobody likes the guy, but…afraid?" Haneru asked, confused, "Do…do you think he might have some dirt on her that prevented her from defending you and I?"

"Sounds crazy, but I don't know what my mom could've done that would've scared her that badly." Nikolo muttered, "Then again, Mr. Oda does seem like the kind of guy who would get the dirt on anyone, no matter what."

"Right. He was part of the police force back in the day, according to my mom." Haneru recalled, "He especially specialized in dealing with kids our age."

"Yeah, and my mom said that he always was able to break a kid down if they broke the rules or disrespected him." Nikolo explained, "My mom knew him back then as well, and said that the only people he had the most irritation were a group of students that your mom hung around with." Haneru looked to him, surprised. That must've been his dad and all of his friends that his mom told him about. So the grudge against his dad dated back all the way back then.

"Still, he was a pretty decorated guy in the force." Nikolo finished, "I don't know how he ended up becoming a landlord in the first place."

"But considering things, I guess he still hates kids our age." Haneru pointed out, looking down again, "But…why does he hate me so much?"

"Who knows?" Nikolo answered, leaning back on his hands.

Haneru looked down at the ground, thinking. He hated him because of his father, he knew that. However, why did he hate his father so much? What did he do to deserve so much of a grudge that was passed down to another generation? Whatever the reason was, it was no excuse to put them in the situation he was in now.

Just then, the door opened up, and the two turned to the door. Nikolo's mother, Kiya Hideyoshi, walked in. She stopped short of the living room, seeing the uninvited guest in their apartment. "Mom!" Nikolo gasped in shock, "You're home early!"

"I was let off early." Kiya answered, frowning as she looked to Haneru, who stood to his feet, looking back at her with the same frown, "Hello, Haneru."

"Mrs. Hideyoshi…" Haneru answered, not wavering his gaze from her. This woman was one of many 'eye-witnesses' of seeing him damage Mr. Oda's house, and even tried to make her own son, who was with Haneru all that time, pin the blame on his own friend. She and her husband don't like to speak to Haneru since then, even though her husband wasn't part of the act.

"I-I just wanted to invite Haneru over while you guys were gone." Nikolo stammered hesitantly, "He was gonna leave before you came home, but-."

"What did he do to make you blame me?" Haneru interrupted him.

"What?" Kiya questioned, confused.

"What was it that made Oda have you blame me for damaging his house?" Haneru questioned, walking around the couches to confront her, "Was it money? Or was it something worse?"

"I don't know what you are talking about…" Kiya responded, dropping her purse on the table next to her and glaring at Haneru, "I ask that you leave this house."

"Haneru, what are you-." Nikolo started, shocked at this sudden confrontation.

"You know I didn't do damage to Oda's house! You know I was with Nikolo this whole time, but you chose to lie!" Haneru barked at her, "And even now, you hold resentment towards me, for what purpose?! Why are you so scared of Oda, huh?!"

"Haneru, stop!" Nikolo begged him, coming around to try and restrain him by the shoulders, but Haneru continued, "What does he know about you that you want to keep secret?! Is it that horrible, you demand for your own son to lie?!"

"SHUT UP!" Kiya barked at him, stopping the two boys, "You're right! I do know that you didn't damage Oda Kusingo's house, but what does it matter now?! I may not enjoy it, but you had to fall from grace in order to keep my family safe!"

"Safe from what? The truth?!" Haneru demanded angrily, "I know you have secrets you wish to keep under the rug, and Mr. Oda knows it. But that's no way of living! We gotta fight back at him, no matter the cost!"

"This isn't a fantasy, Haneru. This is real life!" Kiya retorted, "You can't just stop someone like a superhero does in a movie. That's not how the world works! There is nothing I can do, and there is certainly less you can do, since you're not an adult!"

"Better to be a brave kid than a cowardly adult." Haneru spat. Nikolo looked horrified at his insult towards his mother. This was certainly something he EVER expected Haneru to say.

"Get out." Kiya hissed, pointing to the door, "I don't ever want to see you with my son again. And Nikolo, you are forbidden from ever seeing him."

"But Mom, that's not right!" he retorted, "He was trying to-."

"Stop." Haneru told him quietly, "It's okay. Thanks, but I said what I needed to say. I don't need your defense at this moment. Heck, I barely had any from this town in the first place."

He walked calmly past Kiya, who looked down at Haneru with resentment, and he closed the door behind him, leaving the apartment. When the door closed, Kiya drooped her pointed hand down, and after a second, stormed into her room, and slammed the door behind her. Despite everything, Haneru struck her hard and good, and it was something she couldn't help but admit in her heart. She really was afraid of Oda.

All Nikolo could do was stand there, looking from his mom's room to the front door. Haneru was the last person to ever start up a scene like he did now. He was kind and caring, and quite reserved at school when it came to socializing, and the last person ever to start a fight. What made Haneru change like he did now? There had to be more than just what he accidentally read on his smartphone.

Haneru had reached his apartment door again, opening it up, and shutting it behind in frustration. Mia had already left to talk with Mr. Oda. He stood at the front of the door, taking off his shoes. _'So not even my best friend's mom is of any help.'_ he thought to himself, _'Why doesn't anyone stand up against Oda?! He has everyone of them on a leash, and will choke them if they rebel against him. Screw it, I am done with holding back!'_

He walked to the living room, and looked to the two doors that led to his and his mom's rooms. It was only then that he realized something; He never got this rebellious or angry before for anyone else other than Oda. Now, he had tried to convince his best friend's mother to rebel, and ended up in an argument with her. Why was this? Did this change happen since he went into that other world? As surprising as it was, he could see it happen. After all, in some anime, a character can have a change in attitude after a big moment like that. Guess his situation was no different.

"I know mom told me that I couldn't use that app, but…" he started, looking at his mom's room. He slowly opened it up, peeking inside. After a small glance around the room, he recognized something in particular on the nightstand. It was his smartphone. He abruptly opened the door wide, scared at first that his mom might've been in there. Once he knew the cost was clear, he quickly walked over to the nightstand, and grabbed his phone. After booting it up, he saw the navigation app still on there.

He stood there, looking at his phone. He knew what he wanted to do would betray his mother's words. He knew that what he wanted would be dangerous, as his mother warned him. However…

 _"Together, we became known as the Shadow Break; People who stole the hearts of those who hide their crimes in the shadows, making them change and confess their crimes."_

Those were her mother's words. She said that they changed people and make them confess their crimes. If that were the case, then could that mean he could change Oda's mind, and make him admit his guilt? Then they won't have to worry about anything else. "Sorry, mom…" he apologized quietly, tightening his grip on his smartphone, "…But if it gives us a way to set us free from Oda's grip, and even gives people a chance to be free from him, then…I gotta do this."

He then went into the bathroom, and pulled out some special medicine that his mom had on hand. "Gotta make sure I can heal myself. Every RPG hero needs some potions." Haneru told himself, walking into his room and putting the medicine in a small knapsack. He shouldered the bag as he walked out of the room, thinking. His powers in the other world, plus his weapon, worked enough. If he didn't know what to do once he got there, he might as well use what he did know, plus any ideas he had from video games and anime.

He pulled out his smartphone, ready to use it. However, he stopped as he thought of something. It wouldn't do to start here. He should probably start somewhere closer to Oda's house. If he started here, it would take him a while getting closer to his house, or palace. Plus, with all those soldiers about, he would be totally exhausted by fighting through them all. So the best place to go is somewhere he could secretly enter the palace. With a face set and a heart filled with determination, he exited his apartment, making his way to Oda's house.

* * *

A good twenty minutes before this, Mia had arrived at Oda's house. She rang the doorbell, and Oda opened the door. "Oh, hello, Mia Kurosawa."

"I need to speak with you about the conditions you set for me and my son, if that is okay." she requested in a calm and serious tone.

Oda paused, looking at her for a second, then huffed, "Very well. I'll listen to what you have to say." He opened the door wider, and allowed Mia inside.

The main room of the house was wide and what you would expect from an elderly gentleman. It had two sofas chairs and a couch surrounding a table in the middle, portraits here and there on past family members and friends he had, a wooden pendulum clock against the far side of the room, and a separate place where he held all the memories and items he had during the police force. There was even a work desk towards one area that contained all the things needed for a man to run a business as a landlord, including files upon files of info on each and every person in one of his apartment complexes.

"Sit down." Oda told his guest, taking a pitcher of iced tea he made, along with two glasses. Mia sat in one of the sofa chairs, placing her purse next to her. Oda poured the iced tea, and gave one to himself, then one to Mia, who didn't immediately take it. "So, have you decided on staying here after all?" he asked her, sitting on the sofa chair the opposite side of the table, taking a sip of his tea.

"Let me just try to recollect all the things you demanded my son and I on." she started, crossing her arms over her chest, "If I am able to leave with my son, I have to pay ten times the amount of the usual final payment. But that would set my son and I back such a ways, we would struggle to live in our new home. However, if I don't pay it, you'll bring me to court, accusing me and my son with damaging the apartment, along with this house, and other things that mainly my son has been falsely accused of. Knowing your 'connections', I'm sure the court will be in your favor, leaving my son and I in a worse situation than if I paid the exuberant amount you're asking us of. Am I right so far?"

"Straight to the point, and detailed to a fault. You know, it's stuff like that that makes you quite a charming presence, Mia." Oda snickered, taking a sip of his tea again, then continuing, "But yes. Those are my demands. You remember everything else?"

"I do. The only way for me to make my normal payment is if I stay behind while my son leaves. However, my son has nowhere to go without me, and I would be disgraced as I already sent all my forms and information to the hospital I am suppose to work at, but I wouldn't be able to go there, nor return to my usual job. That's a condition I refuse to take."

"I see…" Oda muttered, "…So, what do you plan on doing? You can look at it, however you want, but I won't change my choices. Not even for you, Mia."

"First of all, I don't like it when you call me by my first name." she scoffed, "Secondly, why do you hate my son so much?"

"Why? He's a troublemaker, that's why." he answered, "Most kids at that age are starting to become delusional, thinking they can do whatever they want. They have always been like that, even back in the day."

"You mean back when you were always on my husband's case, along with the rest of my friends?" Mia asked, glaring at him.

Oda frowned as she mentioned the man she was married to. "I really don't see how you became attracted to Noriaki Kurosawa." he sighed, "In fact, I don't know how you ended up being part of that group of misfits in the first place."

"Because I was a 'misfit', just like them." Mia answered, "I may have been smart and beautiful, but I couldn't even be accepted by others at my age. They constantly saw me as someone at a level beyond them, when all I wanted to do was be friends with someone. Those who did want to be 'friends' ended up wanting something out of me. My intellect, my looks, anything except for the real me. But Noriaki didn't care for that. He saw me for me, and accepted me. He, and all my other friends, were the greatest thing I got from those years."

"Please, there could've been better candidates than them." Oda stated, "Yes, he was a smart one, but that was also a problem. He was way too clever with getting away with all those situations you kids were getting into. No matter how much I tried to reform him to be a better person, and stay away from trouble, he didn't care, and constantly became a pain. If I could say one thing you did wrong, it was marrying that rebellious young man. And because of that, your son has ended up becoming just as difficult as him."

"How dare you speak about Noriaki or my son like that!" Mia barked, standing onto her feet, her fists curled, "I don't regret marrying him, or having Haneru. True, he is socially-inept and fantasy-driven, but he is a bright young man with a lot of conviction, just like his father."

"Exactly my point. Your son is just like his father; a boy with the idea that freedom and justice are on his side, when it is something he has to gain." Oda retorted, "His mind is in the clouds, and not in reality. I mean, look at me. I worked hard to get where I am at. This allows me to gain connections, allowing me to do more than what I could at your or his age. Those who can't understand that at this point in their life has to be, shall we say, dragged out of the clouds."

"By that, you mean like how you set up that scenario on my son damaging your house?" Mia questioned him.

"He DID damage my house. There were eyewitnesses who saw that." Oda reminded her. Mia didn't believe this, as she already learned the truth from Oda's Shadow. However, she couldn't say anything on that, as she had no proof to back up her claim that she would like to divulge.

"It's your choice, Mia." Oda finished up, "You can either agree to my payment, or make it easier by sending your son off. Or we can take this to court, and see how well you do there."

Mia gritted her teeth, wanting so hard to retaliate. However, another side of her told her she shouldn't. It'll only cause more trouble. And the last thing she and her son needed in this situation was to add more trouble on top of what they already had.

"I…need to think this through, more." she told him, taking her purse, "Sorry for taking your time."

"Oh, it's no problem." he answered, "But you have to realize I am doing this for your son's benefit. He needs to understand this world is filled with harsh consequences for those who can't obey those who have a higher rank in life than him."

"Yeah, by sacrificing me and my son's lives…" Mia scowled as she passed by him.

"Sometimes, it's for the better." Oda stated in a mock sympathy tone, as Mia opened the door and closed it behind her, leaving him alone.

 _"It's no good."_ Mia told herself as she walked, _"I can't persuade him with his desires so strongly distorted like this. The only way I can do that is if…"_ She stopped in her tracks, looking down at the ground. The only way, at this point, was the Metaverse. Just like before, when the odds were against her, Noriaki, and all her other friends, they could count on the Metaverse to help them seek out, and change the heart of the opposer. However, that was before the disappearance of her loved one, her four friends with them, and her two dear friends dying in the recent years, and she knew the Metaverse was also to blame for their deaths, as well.

 _"I can't go there again. I've lost too many people I love and cared for because of that world."_ Mia told herself, _"But even so…there's nothing I can do or say to change Oda's mind. He hates Haneru like he hates Noriaki. I know why he does, but still…Why take it out on me and my son?"_

She struggled to hold back the tears that were urging to come out of her. She hated herself for being so useless to do anything, but she couldn't do anything herself in the Metaverse. Her mask didn't even reappear when she was there. She should've been considered a threat, and yet her powers didn't come forth. The only one who had the power to do anything was Haneru, but she was too scared to lose him. She didn't know what to do.

Back in an alleyway, looking at his mother, was Haneru. He watched her mother as she tried to hold her emotions in check. He couldn't help but feel sorry for his mom. After all, he cared for her well-being so much, that if she felt stressed or saddened, so did he. However, he did know one thing; reasoning with Oda didn't work. He was just too unreasonable to make him change his mind. Meaning there was only one thing to do.

"Sorry, mom." he whispered to himself, looking down at the navigation app, with the previous entry in place, "In order for us to be free, I need to take on that shadow version of Oda. Let's do it." He tapped the button, and a voice said, "BEGINNING NAVIGATION."

Mia's ears perked up, as did her sensing a slight bit of distortion. She looked about, and saw, in the shadows of the alleyway, her own son with his smartphone. "Haneru!" she cried, racing towards him as the area distorted about him. Before she could get caught in the distortion herself, Haneru vanished, without a trace.

"No…" she muttered, her pupil's quivering as she panicked, "No, no, no! Haneru, you weren't suppose to go back there!" She looked about, struggling to find a way back to the other world. However, she might as well have been finding a needle in a haystack. There was no way for her to reach without the Metaverse app or the journal, which she threw away a long time ago. Now, her son was gone, and she couldn't do anything to save him.

For a moment, she felt hopeless and lost, not sure of what to do. However, as she looked back at her adventures with her husband, she recalled something. Back then, when she came back from the Metaverse the first time, after Noriaki unlocked his Persona, she somehow gained the same pocket journal for herself, allowing her to go back in there, herself. Could this be a similar situation, as well?

She dove into her purse, and pulled out her smartphone. She scanned through all her apps she had on the phone, until she found what she was looking for. The same app her son had, with the black eye. Even though something similar happened to her before, it was surprising to see the app on her phone. But this meant she could chase after her son. She had to stop him from doing something reckless.

"I'm coming, Haneru." she muttered, tapping in the same keywords Haneru said before. 'Mr. Oda', 'manipulation', 'his house', and 'Palace in a village'. "CANDIDATE FOUND. BEGINNING NAVIGATION." the app spoke, and she felt the distortion around her.

* * *

In the Metaverse, Haneru hid behind some barrels in the alleyway, looking at the area where Oda's house should've been, only to see the same palace as before. "Dang, it really does become a feudal Japan palace." he muttered, scratching his head.

It was then that he noticed the mask over his eyes. He looked down himself, and saw he was dressed once again in the same attire he wore when he awoke to his Persona. "Whoa…" he muttered, now getting a better look at himself, "Dude, I seriously look like a ninja…well, if Sun Wukong were a ninja."

He pulled out his weapon, looking at it. "And this quarterstaff…I think I did this and…" he twisted both sides and pulled it apart, revealing the hidden blades inside the quarterstaff. "This is freakin' awesome!" he said gleefully, "I cannot wait to use this as a surprise attack on Oda."

He looked around the entrance of the alleyway, and saw the large front doors to the palace. Four guards were standing in preparation for any intruders entering the place. "Looks like the front isn't gonna be easy to get through. Still, that won't stop me. I gotta beat the crap out of Oda in order to change his heart."

"It won't work as easily as that." said a familiar voice, and Haneru's face paled. His mom stood behind him, her arms crossed and her face angry.

"M-Mom?!" he gasped, "How did you get here?!"

"I discovered the same Metaverse app on my phone." she answered, showing her smartphone having the same app up as Haneru's, "But that's besides the point. You betrayed my trust and entered this place!"

"I know." Haneru muttered in response, looking down in guilt.

"Did you not hear what I told you before? The Metaverse is far too dangerous for you!" Mia reminded him, "I already lost your father here, along with so many of my friends, who are either missing or dead, all because of this place. I refuse to lose you here. We are heading back home, this instant!"

"No!" Haneru barked back, glaring at his mom, "I refuse to stand by and not do anything to stop Oda from controlling us and everyone else in this damn town! I mean, after what happened at Nikolo's place…"

He spent the next few minutes telling his mom what happened between him and Kiya just moments ago. After he was finished, Mia looked stunned at both her son's argument with her neighbor, to the defense Kiya held until she banned Haneru from seeing his son again. She was such a sweet woman, that she never could believe that she would be this rude, or even withhold the truth about what her son not do that night.

"I can't stand it. If Kiya is unable to stand up against Oda, then I'm pretty darn well sure that all those other adults won't stand up to him." Haneru growled, "I mean, they are afraid of him. They can't fight back without being exposed with truths they like to keep buried. Truths that Oda figured out, and God know how he found them out. We can't win against him in the real world, but we can beat him here."

"Haneru, I understand that you want to help, but I don't want to lose you." Mia told him, "You don't know what you are getting yourself into by stepping into this world."

"Then teach me." Haneru asked her, "Show me how to change Oda's heart. Teach me how to change him so he can confess his crimes."

"But-." she started, but Haneru continued, "I know you fear this place, and I know I can get hurt in this place, too. But I can't stand by and allow this to happen. So even if you don't teach me how this world works, or how to fight in it, I will just figure it out myself. Because I have to do this not only for our freedom, but for all those ruled under Oda's manipulation!"

Mia looked at him in shock. She could clearly feel the vibes of her husband emanating off of Haneru right now. Her mind went to Oda's words about her son. _"Your son is just like his father; a boy with the idea that freedom and justice are on his side, when it is something he has to gain."_

"He was right about that." she muttered, drawing confusion from Haneru, "I guess I have no choice, do I? Okay, then. I'll teach you how to navigate through the Metaverse, and how to steal Oda's heart." Haneru went from surprised to relieved that he talked his mom into helping him.

"However, if things become too dangerous, we pull out. Promise me that, okay?" she told him.

"Okay." Haneru answered, "And if we fail, we can always try again."

"Assuming we both don't die here." Mia added, walking past Haneru to peek out the alley to see the security, "First of all, barging through the front gate is a reckless idea. We should survey the exterior wall, and find an entrance ourselves. The less ruckus we make, the better."

"Roger." Haneru understood, "Let's go find one!"

Without the guards noticing, they snuck out of the alleyway, racing to the wall. They stealth fully raced along the edge of the place, making sure to keep an eye out for any soldiers coming out to attack them. Mia made sure to keep an eye out for soldiers, while Haneru investigated the exterior wall for any signs to get through it. There wasn't anything that could help them over the wall. However, they did eventually find a place at the back part of the palace.

As they waited for a soldier to past, the two hid in the shadows for a moment. Haneru looked to the soldier passing them, but Mia looked at the wall. She saw a pair of barrels against the wall, not tall or sturdy enough for them to leap over the wall. However, she noticed something behind them.

"Come with me." she told her son, and they scurried over to the barrels. She pushed one aside, and saw a hole big enough for the two of them to crawl through.

"Excellent find, mom!" Haneru whispered.

"Your father had a sixth sense for finding secret areas like this. I just learned to keep an eye out for things like this myself." Mia pointed out, stepping aside, "You go first." Haneru nodded, and crawled through the hole, with her mother bringing up the rear. It was cramped, but they were able to crawl through without too much trouble.

Just as they were about to pop out, Haneru stopped, with her mother halting behind him, asking, "Why'd you stop?"

"There's a guard in front of me!" he whispered back, looking to see a soldier a bit of a distance away from the hole, but definitely close enough to detect them if they tried scurrying away from him, "What do I do?"

"I guess we have no choice. You have to fight him." Mia sighed, "Fortunately, this could be an opportunity for us. If you can get the jump on him, and rip off its' mask, it will become a monster, but it will be temporarily phased by the sudden attack."

"Gotcha." Haneru understood, looking ahead. He inhaled deeply, then exhaled, then crawled out of the hole, rising to his feet quickly. Before the Shadow soldier could sense him, he leapt up behind him, grabbing the edge of the mask, and peeled it off like he was ripping off a bandaid. The soldier seemed quite unstable, then he transformed into a puddle of black and red muck, then into a green horse with a wispy back-half.

"A Kelpie. Perfect!" Mia stated.

"Why? What's so perfect about it?" Haneru asked her. However, before he could get an answer, he was suddenly buffered by powerful winds by the Kelpie. He endured the winds as best as he could.

"Use your Persona!" Mia shouted, pressed against the wall by the wind.

"Sasuke, come forth!" Haneru shouted, and his mask turned into blue flames as he summoned his Persona, who got in front of Haneru, blocking him from the attack.

"Listen to me. Persona all have strengths and weaknesses." Mia explained, "For example, a Kelpie has strong resistances against wind-element attacks, but is weak to electricity."

"So it's like type weaknesses in those monster capture games I played." Haneru realized, smirking, "I can understand that. In that case…" He turned to the Kelpie, whipping his hand as his Persona sliced the winds made by the Kelpie with it's weapons, stopping him entirely.

"Zap him silly!" Haneru shouted, and Sasuke unleashed Zio, shocking the Kelpie and making it whinny in agony, before disappearing from existence. "Dude, that worked like a charm!" Haneru cheered, snapping his finger as his Persona reverted to a mask.

"Well done, but don't get too cocky." Mia warned him, "You had an advantage over it. However, there are other enemies who can gain a strong advantage over you. Fight only when necessary, but don't charge into every opponent you see."

"I understand." Haneru responded, "This is so much like those stealth missions I played on games. So fun…!"

"This isn't a game, Haneru!" Mia hissed quietly at him, "You die in this world, you die for real. Don't forget that! If you do, I will snap your phone in half so that you will never come back, understand?!"

"R-Right…" Haneru answered nervously. She was really serious about making sure he was careful in this world.

The two raced into the shadows as a pair of soldiers approached the area, wondering what the noise was, only to find the area seemingly vacant. They wandered back to their posts, with Haneru and Mia sneaking off.

"So what do we do now?" Haneru asked his mother as they snuck around to the front again, "How do we change his heart?"

"By stealing his Treasure." she answered, "While he is not aware of this world, it still has a connection to his heart. A Palace, and I don't just mean this kind of palace, is the manifestation of a person's twisted desires. By destroying the Palace, you are relinquishing a person's twisted desires. To do that, we need to steal their Treasure, the source of their twisted desires."

"Sorry, I don't speak psychology. How does removing his distorted desires help us out?" Haneru asked, stopping to look at her.

"The desires that create this Palace are what preventing him from confessing his crimes. If we eliminate the palace, so do those twisted desires, but not the crimes he committed. Hence, he will not bear the weight of his crimes, and he will confess them. Plus, he will not know what we've done here after we eliminate his Palace."

Haneru processed everything into his head, making sense out of everything. "So long story short, we need to steal his 'Treasure', which makes the Palace disappear, which makes him confess his crimes." he summed up, raising a finger with every step.

"To put it simply like that, yes." Mia answered, "However, we have to be careful. Desires also make up our everyday routine, such as the desires to sleep, eat, and love. We have to eliminate the twisted desires, but not all of his desires. Otherwise, they result in a mental shutdown. In other words, he could die."

Haneru paled at this idea. "He…could die?" he asked, "I mean, I hate the guy, and all, but killing him will leave more guilt than anything."

"There are fail-safes to stopping a mental shutdown, as the Shadow Break team had done before." Mia answered, "One such example is not killing Oda's Shadow. Beat him into submission, if you must, but don't kill him. There are other things I can tell you, but only when we snatch Oda's Treasure."

"Well, you're the expert, not me." Haneru stated, sneaking through some bushes, looking around the corner to see the front door of the U-shaped palace, "Let's just go find this Treasure, and snatch it."

"No. First, we're making a secure infiltration route to the Treasure. Getting it is not as easy as it seems."

"Again, you're the expert, not me." Haneru repeated, "Now, how should we approach this?"

"Going through the front shouldn't be an option. Let's take the door near us." Mia requested, indicating the sliding doors close to them.

They slid through the doors without any of the soldiers noticing them, looking about. No signs of guards…yet. The two started making their way towards the main hall, hiding behind furniture and potted plants to avoid detection from guards. Haneru wanted to hasten the pace on reaching the Treasure, but Mia made sure to keep him in check. "We mustn't be careless. If we are detected by too many soldiers, so will the awareness of our presence by both the Shadow and the real Oda. We can't allow him to know we are here."

Haneru understood and made sure to run through all the lessons that his mom was teaching him, but it was still a bit of a chore to remember it all. Even so, it was something he was eager to do. He was gonna change Oda's heart, and that will save him, his mom, and all others from his dominance over all the apartments he owned in Toyota.

After a while, the two finally reached a room that was clearly the library of the place. Unlike the usual modern day library, instead of books, the shelves had scrolls hanging all over, with plaques underneath telling what each scroll had on it.

"Woah…this is a lot of scrolls." Haneru stated, looking about.

"This room has to mean something. It is part of Oda's subconscious." Mia stated, looking about. She then stepped on shredded pieces of paper, and looked down. One of the scrolls was intently torn apart. She picked up some of the pieces, and recognized her husband's name on it. "Noriaki…" she muttered, "Why is this scroll ripped up, like this?"

Haneru was looking through the scrolls, wondering if anything sounded familiar. He then stopped at one, with a plaque underneath it that read, 'Hideyoshi'. "This is…" he started, looking at the name, then at the scroll. He took it out of the shelf, and rolled out the paper, reading what it had to say. After a minute, he gasped in horror, and dropped the scroll, drawing his mom's attention.

"Haneru, what's wrong?" she asked.

"Th-this is…" he started, horrified at what he had read.

Mia, concerned at his attitude, walked over and looked at the scroll he read. When she reached where Haneru ended, she looked shocked beyond belief. "Prostitution?!" she gasped, "Kiya was selling herself for three years since the age of eighteen?! Why?"

"I don't know, but…" Haneru started, "I bet this must be the dirt that Oda had on her that made her lie about seeing me damage Oda's house. It was no wonder she got so defensive with me before."

Mia pondered on this for a moment, then came to a revelation that was both saddening and horrifying. If Kiya was twenty-one when she stopped, and she was thirty-seven now, that meant Nikolo, who was a month over seventeen years old, was born around the time when she was still a prostitute. If that were the case, then he could end up as the result of those times. That meant her husband wouldn't actually be Nikolo's real father.

"If Oda told this to her family, this could leave incredibly devastating results." Mia realized, "How sick for a man to hover that kind of past over a sweet woman like that."

"You can say that again." Haneru growled, his fists curled, "I bet so many other people have pasts they're trying to escape from, and Oda's got all of the dirt on them. We can't let him get away with this!"

Just then, soldiers appeared at the door. "Halt! Who goes there?!" one of them demanded. Haneru looked at the two in rage, and charged at them. Both of the soldiers suddenly turned to muck, then into a pink devil-like creature, an Incubus, and a woman in a long red dress, a Silky.

"Out of the way!" Haneru roared, pulling out his quarterstaff, and whacking the Incubus, sending him crashing into the wall of scrolls. He fell to the floor, followed by several scrolls landing on its' head, knocking it out for good.

The Silky unleashed a blast of ice at Haneru, who turned to see it coming, and with a twist of his weapon, he pulled out his hidden sword, and slashed the icy attack. "Sasuke!" he shouted, "Cleave that woman!" His mask became his Persona, as he shot forward and with a slash of his blade, he sliced right through the Silky, making it scream in pain as it turned into nothingness.

Mia was amazed at her son's incredible assault on the Shadows as he panted from over-exerting his emotions. "We gotta get this assholes Treasure, now!" he barked at his mom, and he took off.

"Haneru, wait!" Mia shouted, racing after him. He was being far too reckless, letting his emotions get the better of him.

Haneru wasn't stopping his charge through the hallway as he bested every Shadow that came his way. However, he wasn't being at all careful or secretive. He was using his weapon and Persona on all the enemies that were coming at him, along with the rage that was going through him at Oda.

After the fourth enemy encounter, his mom caught up to him, pulling him back. "Are you insane?! I already warned you about what happens if the awareness of our presence gets known!" she scolded him, "If you're gonna keep this up, then I'm taking you back home again!"

Haneru gritted his teeth as he tried to calm himself. He knew his mom was right, but still… "I…I know, but I can't stand it!" he growled, "How can someone be so cruel? He dug up dirt on people just to control them! Why would he do that?"

"I don't know." Mia answered, seeing the reason behind Haneru's anger, "He was not nice to my friends, especially your father. What made him go down this path is beyond me." The two took a moment's pause, with Haneru calming himself down a bit, while Mia waited for him to calm himself.

"I was wondering who was making the uproar." said a voice behind Haneru. They turned to look down the end of the hallway and saw, standing with three strong-looking soldiers, Oda's Shadow, with the cognition of Mia standing behind him, looking silent and obedient as ever.

"Oda!" Haneru barked, the anger resurfacing instantly.

"You just had to come back here, didn't you?" Oda's Shadow asked, with a slight smirk, "Of course you did. You're a daydreamer who thought he could change things by taking me down. It's thoughts like that that show how stupid most kids your age end up being. In fact, your generation is even more idiotic than the ones I dealt with back in my day."

"Shut up!" Haneru retorted, stepping forward, "You're unforgivable. I saw that library filled with all the secrets of the people living in your apartments. Why do you have something like that?!"

"People are so naive." Oda scoffed, "They think that they can keep their secrets hidden from the world, and that it wouldn't cause any consequences if they stayed secret. However, it's those things that are useful to me. Having something to pin them down gives me authority over idiots like them. Children, like yourself, who have no power in the real world are no different. All they need to do is obey those who have the power, the connections, and the authority to rule over all."

"That's bull, and you know it!" Haneru barked, charging at Oda, summoning his Persona, "Shock the living daylight out of him!" Sasuke unleashed a blast of electricity at Oda, but one of his soldiers got in the way, and transformed into a being that was part snake, part man, carrying a spear and shield. He raised his shield, and nullified the attack.

"What?!" Haneru gasped, seeing his attack blocked by the snake man.

"A Naga!" Mia realized, "They are immune to electric attacks!"

"Time to put this boy down for good. Go!" Oda shouted, raising a hand forward, and the Naga slid his way to Haneru, readying his spear. He lunged, but Haneru dodged out of the way, unleashing a whack with his staff, sending it faltering backwards, but not defeated.

"Pin him down!" Oda ordered, and the Naga unleashed a powerful blast of electricity at Haneru, who was barely protected by Sasuke. He felt pain, despite not being hit, and the shockwaves sent him flying into the wall. Groaning in pain, his Persona reverted to a mask as he shook his head, looking up to see the Naga slither towards him, and slammed his shield into him, knocking the wind out of him as he was pinned to the wall.

"Haneru!" Mia cried out, panicking at her son's situation. He was trapped, and unable to do much to escape.

Oda laughed at the losing team. "It seems I was right. You're all bark, and no bite." he stated, "Now then, let's make sure you never get in my way again." Naga raised his spear, pointing it at Haneru's neck.

"Stop! I beg of you!" Mia shouted, "My son doesn't deserve this kind of punishment! Please, don't hurt him anymore!"

"On the contrary, this is exactly what he deserves." Oda retorted, grinning maliciously at Mia, "He deserves it just like his father should. However, he's not here, so I might as well settle things with your son."

"What do you have against Noriaki that would grant this much resentment?!" Mia demanded, "What did he do that made you hate even his son, who has done nothing to gain this cruelty?!"

Oda's grin turned into a frown as he answered, "You really don't know? Noriaki humiliated me more than any other person on the face of the earth. It was thanks to him that I lost my reputation!"

"Your reputation?" Mia questioned, thinking back to all those years ago when she was a Persona user. Finally, a memory clicked, and she asked, "Wait a minute…are you talking about what he did to free Daichi from jail, after you imprisoned him under weak charges?! That was twenty years ago!"

"Yes, it was." Oda answered, "And yet, because of him dodging my every trap to put him down, and how he destroyed my reputation in the police force after what he did, I can never forgive a man like him! Through luck and deception, he humiliated me! Thanks to him, I lost everything!"

"You were the one who couldn't stop attacking us every chance you got." Mia retorted, "You were so obsessed with Noriaki and my friends, you led yourself into your own folly! Why can't you admit that was your fault?"

"If your 'friends' were smart, they would've admitted to their crimes!" Oda growled, "You were always in all of those situations involving criminals, who suddenly had a change of heart and confessed their crimes. I was the only one who saw the connection, but no one believed me! So I tried to get the truth out of each and every one of you, but still he interfered. It's all his fault! But I can rectify that, now…" He looked to Haneru, who was struggling to break free of Naga, "Fifteen years ago, Noriaki disappeared, along with four of your friends. Two years ago, another one of your friends died in an accident, and other died the following year. Now, it is just you, and his offspring. I won't be satisfied with getting revenge on him until I take everything he owns away from him! I'll take your son's life, and I'll take you, dead or alive!"

Mia couldn't tell if the twisting in her stomach was from the fear of losing her son, just like her husband and friends, or rage at Oda's sick mindset on revenge for something that happened twenty years ago.

Haneru gritted his teeth, and he growled, "Just shut up." Oda and Mia turned to see him get his arms freed as he summoned his quarterstaff, and started pushing the long end of it against the shield, using his whole body on the wall as a brace. "Do you…realize…how stupid you sound?" he asked, his sentence staggering as most of his muscles were used for pushing, "You hate me…because of a grudge you held…against my dad…for twenty years?! You are seriously…messed up!"

He managed to push the shield of the Naga back enough to free his lower body, and using his upper body for support, he raised his feet and kicked the belly of the Shadow, pushing him back. Haneru fell to the floor, breathing heavily in exhaustion as he used his weapon to raise himself back up.

"Haneru!" Mia gasped, amazed at her son's strength.

"I am tired of hearing the ramblings of a deceiving old man who can't let a twenty year old grudge go." Haneru continued, giving a seething glare at Oda, who remained stone-faced, "You make it sound like killing me and ruining my mom's life is right, but it's not! You are not a victim of my father, but of your own damn ego! Stop turning the blame on my father and I!" Mia look amazed at her son's daring to stand up against Oda.

"Hmph! Why are you still talking, you insolent whelp?" Oda questioned him, "Throw this trash away!" Naga enchanted his own spear, and unleashed a slash that sent Haneru flying in pain, tumbling next to her mother.

Mia raced over to her son, panicking over the damage he was dealt with. "Haneru, please tell me you're okay!" she begged to him as he tried to regain himself. He shakily dug into his pocket, and pulled out one of the medicines he took from home. Mia saw it, and hastily took it, spraying it on her son. It stung for a second, but the wounds started to heal.

"Why do you bother healing that useless son of yours?" Oda questioned as the Naga slowly approached the two, "He is just as worthless as all those other friends of yours, and deserves to disappear just like them!"

This made something in Mia snap. Something that she thought she lost for the past fifteen years. The rebellious rage she had stored up inside of her wanted to come out, and Oda's Shadow triggered it.

Haneru stood back up again, slowly but surely, and glared at Oda, who looked surprise at his expression. The same expression his father had given to him plenty of times in the past. "Damn it…stop looking at me like that!" Oda barked, "Just die, will you?!"

"I won't die, you asshole." Haneru growled, "I refuse to fall to a pitiful man like you. I would be ashamed if I did!" Mia looked up at her son, seeing the expression and the words he said exactly like Noriaki. The man she married that inspired hope in her heart so many times now lived inside her son.

"I've had enough of this. Soldier, end him once and for all!" the Naga readied itself to strike Haneru down, when Mia suddenly moved in front of him, blocking its' path.

"Mom, what are you…" Haneru started.

"You know, it was always your father that made all doubts and fears disappear, no matter the situation." she interrupted him, "Oda told me you were just like him, and I believe that to be true. You are so much like your father now, it's scary. This world may have taken many things from me, but it gave me things that I can never forget. Friends. Love. Freedom. All these things still reside in my heart, along with the rebel inside of me."

"Soldier, I give you permission to kill her, as well!" Oda ordered, drawing the fake Mia close to him, "I'll be satisfied with this one, so end her life!"

"I find who I was before pretty humiliating." Mia stated, "A coward who only looked at this world as a cursed place. But it's thanks to you, and Oda pissing me off…" She glared harshly at the Naga as she finished, "…it makes me want to punish assholes like him, and take everything they stole!" The Naga backed off in slight fear, as did Oda and the soldier next to him. Haneru looked both scared and amazed at her mother at this very moment.

" **It has been a long time, hasn't it?** " said a voice in Mia's head. One she recognized well. Her eyes suddenly went yellow as her head throbbed in pain, and she grimaced as she clutched her head, all the while staying on her feet. " **Why did you allow your fears to shut me away? You grounded yourself, chained by your own sorrow, spouting false words that refrained you from breaking out. There was no need for that. The spirit of your loved ones still reside in you, calling to you to be free. Why would you ignore their voices for so long?** "

Mia panted heavily all through the speech, enduring a pain she felt once before. Finally, she found her voice as she grimaced, "I know…I was a fool before. Please, reforge my contract with me, Cordelia!"

" **Of course.** " the voice responds, as Mia uses all her strength to keep herself on her feet, " **I am thou. Thou art I. The chains of fear cannot restrain your heart any longer. Take to the sky, show thy true self, and punish the deceitful hearts that steal from the innocent!** "

Mia felt a familiar mask cover her eyes. A mask that looked like a pair of butterfly wings, black and dark magenta. "Let's do this…" she muttered, taking her left hand and grabbing the right side of her mask, "Cordelia, come forth!" She ripped off the mask, taking some of her blood with it. There was an explosion of blue flames that sent the Naga and Haneru flying back.

When she reappeared, Mia wore an entirely different look, which made look almost like a fairy. Her dress was tight, cleavage-exposing, and black with gold filigree decorating it, specifically around her chest and waist. It had frilly short sleeves that barely covered her shoulders, and it was tucked into a knee-length skirt, which was dark pink and black-trimmed. She wore black stockings with high pumps that were the same color as her skirt. She also wore a pair of belts that crossed her waist, held by a gold, decorated buckle with a rose quartz embedded in it, and bore short-sleeved, black gloves. Attached to the back of her dress were a pair of clear, pink fairy wings that draped down below her hips.

Behind her was her own Persona; a woman with red skin, closed eyes, long hazel hair that braided at the lower half, a golden tiara, a white, medieval-era dress that fell to her feet, decorated in jewels on her chest, and wrapped with leather belts at her waist and hips, a pink cape that fluttered with her dress, a silver rapier in one hand, and a crude, heart-shaped shield in the other.

"You!" Oda gasped, seeing Mia standing there, glaring back at him.

"M-Mom!" Haneru gasped, "You…"

"Not 'Mom'." Mia corrected him, "In this world, your father and I, along with all our friend, bore codenames to keep our identities a secret. In this world, I am 'Pixie'."

"Pixie?" Haneru echoed, confused.

"Yes. A fairy that is cute and mischievous, stealing from foolish adults like the man before me." Mia explained, "But I can explain more later. Let us fight against Oda's Shadow and his soldiers!"

"Roger!" Haneru answered, stepping forward to aid her mother.

"Kill them both!" Oda barked, "I must retreat!" He left as the other two soldiers suddenly transformed into an armored angel with red wings and a sword, and a humanoid horse. An Archangel and an Orobas.

"Haneru, I can handle the Naga and the Orobas." Mia, now Pixie, told him, "The winged Shadow is weak to electricty. Wait for an opening, and take it down!"

"Got it!" he answered, preparing to fight.

The Naga charged forward, readying its' lance as it aimed for Pixie. However, her Persona reverted to a mask as she produced her weapon, which happened to be a steel-bladed scythe with a long wooden handle. She leapt forward, avoiding the lunging lance, and in a graceful twirl, she hooked the Naga right where the snake body met the human body, and sliced him in half with the blade of her scythe, making it vanish into nothingness.

The Orobas suddenly unleashed flames at Pixie, who looked up to see the fire approaching her, only for her mask to come off, making Cordelia reappear and shield her. She glared at the monster, and waved her free hand forward. Cordelia thrust her blade, creating a blast of blessing light that shot like an arrow, striking the horse-like Shadow, and making it topple.

The Archangel came in next, readying itself to strike with its' blade. However, Haneru leapt in, using his hidden blades to block the attack. "This is my chance, now!" he growled, "Sasuke, take it out!" His mask came off, producing his Persona, who slashed the Shadow away, and followed it up with a blast of electricity that made it fall on top of the Orobas.

"Haneru, let's go for an all-out attack!" Pixie ordered as the two recalled their Personas. Haneru sheathed his swords back into a quarterstaff, and the two leapt forward. In a quick flurry, the two became unrecognizable as they unleashed storm of strikes onto the two downed enemies. They landed a good distance away as Haneru landed on his feet, performing a backflip, then punched the air with his left while doing a fist pump with his right. "Cue the victory fanfare!" he cheered as the Shadows spurted black ooze before vanishing into nothingness, leaving the two alone.

Once they were in the clear, Pixie bent over, panting heavily. "Mom, you okay?" Haneru asked, approaching her.

"I'm fine. It's just been a long while since I used those powers." she answered, "Plus, awakening to a Persona does tax your body a bit after the adrenaline rush. Also, I told you not to call me 'Mom' while we're here."

"Oh, right. You didn't tell me about the whole codename thing." Haneru stated, "I didn't quite get that."

Once Pixie regained herself, she looked at her clothing as she muttered, "Guess the attire is pretty much the same. Still a bit tight and revealing in some parts."

Haneru blushed and refrained from saying anything about how pretty his mom looked. It was like something clearly out of an anime featuring beautiful female protagonists with revealing attire. Instead, he turned away and cleared his throat. "A-Anyway, so does this mean I have to have a codename, too?"

"Hm? Oh, yes." Pixie answered, "Considering we are technically phantom thieves stealing a treasure in this world, we should at least have codenames to match."

"Guess that's true. Most thieves have a codename and whatnot." Haneru agreed, looking down at himself, "Let's see here…I look like a ninja, but I also have parts that are like Sun Wukong…Wukong…kong…Yeah, that could work. I can be Kong."

"Kong? You sure?" Pixie asked.

"Sure. It's powerful and confident." Haneru answered, placing his fists on his hips, "Plus, there are some video game simians with that in their names, and they are strong and nimble, just like my Persona."

"You are such an otaku, Haneru…" Pixie sighed, placing a hand over her mask.

"You mean 'Kong'!" he answered, liking his new name, "Now that we have that established, let's get going!"

"Hang on. The security will be too tight for us to continue today." Pixie warned him, "Let's return home. There are a few things I also wanna make sure we have on hand. If we're to take Oda's Treasure, we had best be prepared."

"Okay…" Kong sighed, his hopes dashed away in an instant.

Pixie patted him on the shoulder, and she smiled as she said, "Do not worry. We're gonna make him pay by making him spout the truth of his deception through his own mouth. Just you wait." The way she phrased it made the self-proclaimed otaku smirk. His mom was clearly ready to take on this world, just like him. They couldn't wait to take down the old man and make him confess his crimes. For now, they used the Metaverse app, and left the premises in order to prepare for their official infiltration tomorrow.

* * *

 **Next Time: Back to Guren's side of the story, as she tries to piece together the situation in the world she arrived in, along with the newfound powers she had gained. As she finds it difficult to figure anything about the Metaverse, she gains help by an unexpected character, who teaches her how to be a proper phantom thief. Will she learn in time to steal the critic's heart?**


	4. Guren's Mentor in the Metaverse

**The next part of Guren's side of the story is up! Ready to see the debut of the person who shows her the ropes in the Metaverse. Enjoy!**

* * *

 _(Opening: Life will Change (Persona 5))_

 **(Music intro)**

 _(Starting in a backdrop of a city with gray and black buildings and a red sky, the camera pans through the place, while the white shadows of eleven individuals racing and leaping passed walls. Then the words 'I am thou. Thou art I' form in cryptic newspaper letter cutouts, followed by the title of the series)_

 **It's not a game. I'm not a robot AI challenging you.**

 _(Ren Amamiya steps out of Leblanc, heading to school, with Morgana in his bag. Guren Sakura joins his side as they both leave, and the screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Theives looks, with the names 'Joker' 'Mona' and 'Lioness' under their respective people.)_

 **I'm not a phantom. I'm in your face and I'm here to see it through.**

 _(Mia puts on her shoes as she heads to work, with Haneru racing up behind her, dislodging his slippers and putting on his shoes to go to school. He waves his mom goodbye as the both open the door to walk out. Screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Thieves looks, with the names 'Kong' and 'Pixie' under each of them.)_

 **Right before your eyes, watch us multiply**

 _(Ryuji, Ann, and a silhouetted figure appear in three parts of the screen, then, with a flip of their respective confidant tarot cards, changing into their respective Phantom Thieves attire, with 'Skull' and 'Panther' listed to their respective owners.)_

 **Come to claim our rights - it's time**

 _(Three more silhouettes appear of the three remaining members, which shift to silhouettes of them in their Phantom Thieves outfits like the others.)_

 **As our power grows, trying to stop us shows…**

 _(Inside the interrogation room, Ren looks to Sae Nijima, who glares seriously at him, while she has pictures of victims he and the Phantom Thieves targeted on the table. Ren sees a sparkling blue butterfly pass his eyes, and he closes his eyes)_

 **(You) Might as well go try'n stop time**

 _(In the velvet room, the camera pans through the bars of the cell, past the twin prison wardens to Igor in his seat. He looks up at the protagonist with his usual grin, and the Metaverse Navigation app button appears behind him as he fades away, and the app activates.)_

 **(Song break)**

 _(From an overhead view of the central street of Tokyo, the area starts to shift as it changes to the Metaverse point of view. Tarot cards of every confidant fall down to the ground in the middle of the big street, where the Phantom Thieves stand, ready to go.)_

 **So you know that we're out there, swatting lies in the making.**

 _(Joker leads off summoning Arsene to his side, readying his dagger as he lunges at a masked Shadow, pulling it off and slashing at it. Lioness leaps in, stopping a pair of unknown Shadows with her rapier and stabbing them through the chest with a pair of thrusts.)_

 **Can't move fast without breaking. Can't hold on or life won't change.**

 _(Kong leap onto a head of a Shadow, whacking him in the back with his quarterstaff, knocking him to the ground before turning his staff into swords and making a falling stab onto him. Pixie uses Magaru with a twirl of her scythe, blowing away a bunch of Shadows. All four Persona users draw their guns out, pointing at four Shadows in the center of their circle, and fire at them.)_

 **And our voices ring out, yeah. Took the mask off to feel free.**

 _(Mona in van mode drives the known thieves, with Pixie at the wheel, as they journey through Mementos. They encounter a bunch of the main Shadow versions of human enemies, each transforming into large silhouettes of their respective monster forms, their eyes glowing.)_

 **Fought it out in the debris, now we know that life will change.**

 _(Mona transforms to normal as they all leap up into the air, Joker, Lioness and Kong taking off their masks to reveal their Personas, ready to attack.)_

 **(Music ending)**

 _(The scene shifts to several of their supporters doing their routines, from Sojiro running the Leblanc, to Mishima walking while looking at the Phan-Site on his phone, Akechi being interviewed on television, Takemi writing something at her clinic, to Kawakami teaching her class, Mifune flipping her tarot cards, then flipping over a calling card made by the Phantom Thieves. The scene shifts to a red and black, spiraling backdrop as the card along with all confidant cards fall into an abyss, replaced with the title of the series again.)_

* * *

 ** _(Previously on P5: Phantom Drive)_**

 _Itsuki fearful look on his face, as he quickly shouted out, "What are you waiting for? Kill her! Kill her now!" The men that surrounded Guren ignited the flint on their guns, and fired._

 _Before the bullets hit, it was almost as if they slowed down in midair. She took one hand, and ripped the mask off in one fell swoop, tearing off some skin as she did so, crying out in pain. Blue flames engulfed her body, protecting her from the kill shots._

 _As the flames died down, Itsuki and the soldiers were shocked to see Guren standing there, wearing new attire that was different from before. The main uniform had the look of an elegant, yet fearsome soldier, sort of medieval. It was mainly black, with bronze-yellow trimmings and patterns about it. She wore a skirt underneath that was the same bronze-yellow color, black leggings boots, bronze gloves with black sleeves almost reaching her elbow, and a yellow lion's tail poking behind her attire. Holstered on a belt wrapping around her midriff was a scabbard, which held a rapier._

 _Standing behind her was something human-like, yet not at all. It seemed like a knight with long, wild yellow hair flowing out of its helmet, and had a red cape on. In its hand was a large sword, almost five times its height. By its side was what seemed like a black lion, letting out a fearsome roar._

 _"What the hell is this?!" Itsuki gasped, panicking at the sight of Guren's new look._

 _"Now it's time to put you in your place!" Guren shouted. "Let's show them our power, Alanna!"_

* * *

After mustering up every ounce of courage in her, every rage she felt, Guren had gave birth to a power of some sort, one ready to fight against Itsuki and his men if need be.

"Are you waiting for an invitation?! Kill her now!" Itsuki ordered.

As he gave that order, his underlings all started to act quite odd. Next thing Guren knew, black ooze came out from their masks and engulfed them, causing them all to changed shapes. When the goop removed itself from them, in their place stood a Genbu, a Kelpie and a Mandrake.

As the three monsters charged at them, so did Guren, the knight and the black lion. The big feline grabbed the Mandrake in its mouth and tossed it around like a rag doll, eventually putting it out of its misery with a hard crunch. The knight brought its sword up to block the Kelpie's charging attack, causing it to skid back a little. The knight then pushed its opponent to a lamp post, cutting it and the pillar in half.

As for Guren, it was hard for her to attack her opponent, with it having two heads, with one of the two having a very long neck. As the said head lunge for her, Guren noticed a postal mailbox behind her and jumped, having the long head get slammed into it. She landed on the monster's neck and dashed towards the main body, as it tried to get its head out of the box. Guren removed her rapier from its scabbard, prepared to jab it deep in the main head's skull, when ice suddenly formed around it and shot towards her. Out of whatever reflex she had, she parried them all out of her way and got to the main body, stabbing her weapon deep between its eyes. The Genbu screamed and struggled before it eventually disintegrated into ashes. Guren landed on her feet on the ground, with the knight and the lion standing by her side.

Itsuki looked at her in fear before regaining his composure and turned to the rest of his men. "What are you waiting for?! It's just three!" The rest of the guys pulled out guns or swords and pointed them at the trio.

"I can tell this isn't gonna be a battle I can win against, right now." Guren said to her allies. "Let's get out of here!" As she took off, the knight bursted into blue flames and went to her face, changing back into a mask while the lion brought the girl on its back, hasting their escape.

"Go ahead and run!" Itsuki called out, "But it doesn't matter if you try to come back or not. I will still win, no matter which world you try to stop me in!"

Guren gritted her teeth, wanting to make a retort, but decided against it. She was too worn out at the moment after whatever she just did. She didn't even know how she ended up in the attire she was wearing now. Before she could ask any more questions, the world started to distort in Guren's eyes and next she knew, she fell on her face... in the middle of Yongen-Jaya.

"YOU HAVE RETURNED TO THE REAL WORLD. WELCOME BACK." she heard. As she painfully got back up, rubbing her face as she did so, Guren noticed the stares of many people around her. Though confused as to how there were suddenly so many, and why the snow suddenly disappeared, Guren just got up, acted natural and walked off.

 _'What the ef happened?'_ she couldn't help but wonder. _'How did I end up in snowy, homeless, shopeless Yongen-Jaya to the normal active one? No, better question: what was all that back there? From Over-Drama Queen Itsuki to that knight and black lion. And all those other monsters! What was all of that?!'_

Guren was so focused on all the questions that popped up in her head, she didn't see where she was going and bumped into someone. "Oof! Sorry about that," she apologized.

"Guren?" came a voice familiar to her. Looking up, Guren saw the person she bumped into was her childhood and best friend Makoto. She was the same age as Guren, and around the same height as her. Her hair was dark brown short, with a French-braid styled headband that matched her hair color. Her eyes were an abnormal red color. She was wearing her Shujin Academy winter school uniform attire.

Before she knew it, she was caught in a hug by her. "Where were you?! Your family and I were worried sick about you!"

Confused, all Guren could do was hug her back and ask, "Wait, what?"

Makoto broke the hug, glaring at her. "Don't 'wait, what' me! Your uncle called me last night, telling me you just vanished! He and I tried calling you, but you didn't answer to either of us! He even went to your apartment with the spare key you gave him, but you weren't there! What happened yesterday?!"

Skeptical to what she was saying, Guren looked at her phone and saw that she did have some missed calls from Makoto and Sojiro. "Oh... So I did," she said, hiding her surprise. "Must've muted the ringtone. Sorry for making you worry, Makoto."

Makoto calmed herself down somewhat and advised her friend, "Just... don't do that again. We were really worried about you. Especially... after yesterday." Getting a quizzical look from her best friend, she added, "Your uncle, he... He told me what happened."

Guren looked down, realizing what she was getting at, as memories of the events that occurred the other day returned to her. "Oh..."

"Look, if there's anything I can do to help, anything at all, don't hesitate to ask me. You know I'll be there to help you."

A sigh escaped Guren's lips, followed by a smile. "You always have been, Makoto. Then again, that's what friends are for." As she said that, she took out a necklace hidden under her shirt. Hanging on it was the yang of the yin yang circle.

"Yeah. I guess so," Makoto agreed, taking out a necklace hidden under her shirt as well, this one with a yin hanging from it. The two girls had these two necklaces almost as long as they have been friends. The choice of who got each half was Guren's choice, as she knew all her life was shrouded in negativity, which the yang side meant.

"But even so, this is my problem to deal with." Guren continued, "You already have more than enough problems to deal with. Besides, you're trying out for Student Council President, aren't you? I can't ask you to take time off of that to help me."

Makoto had a worried look on her face when she heard Guren suggest that. "But, you're worth it…" she muttered, "I can't just ignore your issues."

"It's fine. I always get into these sort of trouble." Guren assured her, placing her hand on her best friend's shoulder, "Likewise, I always get out of them, whether it's myself, or you and your sister at the last minute. Don't worry about a thing, okay?"

As Makoto mulled it over, Guren mentally added, _'Though this may be the one thing I may not be able to get out of so easily.'_

It took several seconds, but Makoto was convinced. "If you say so. But please, if it's too much for you to handle, at least try to reach out. I'm always here for you."

"I hear ya, soon-to-be Student Council Prez," Guren saluted sarcastically.

The second-born Niijima stifled a laugh. "How you still have a sense of humor, I'll never know." she giggled.

"Funny. Sojiro said the same thing yesterday." she replied.

After they walked to Sojiro's house, Makoto said, "I'd better head off. I got a meeting to prepare me for the upcoming speech for Student Council President. Plus, I don't want to get into any further interference with family affairs."

"I'm sure you'll do great." Guren replied, waving her off. Once Makoto was out of sight, she looked up at her uncle's house, hesitant. How would she respond if she was asked where she was last night and this morning? Even she had no clue what she had been through. She wasn't sure how to get around interrogation, as both Sojiro and Futaba both knew her too well. _"Well, let's see what happens…"_ she told herself, and she entered the front gate of the house.

The moment Guren walked inside, the adult of the house instantly appeared as if sensing she had just returned. "Guren!" he called out, and pulled her into a hug, "Thank God, you are safe!"

The said girl was gasping for air, as she moaned, "Sojiro…can't…breath!"

"I'm so sorry." Sojiro apologized, easing up on his hug on her, but not letting go, "It was my fault. I snapped at you yesterday, even though you were only worrying about me and the café."

Guren looked at what she could see of Sojiro's expression, and a pang of regret came over her. "I-It wasn't your fault!" she retorted, "I just…I don't…" She wasn't sure how to explain herself. It's not like she could explain what she had been through. That would throw her family off, or make her believe that she was not right in the head.

"You don't have to explain…" Sojiro seemed to understand, calming down a bit, "I get it. You just needed some time to sort things out. I can understand that. You are growing up into an adult, and you have been dealing with a lot more than most should. At least show Futaba you are alright, okay?"

"I will, and…sorry to make you worry so much." she apologized, "I'll try not to make you guys worry like that again."

Soon as she was done making amends with her uncle, Guren made her way to Futaba's room while Sojiro, relieved to see his niece safe and sound, went to Leblanc to open it up. Guren had reached Futaba's door, and had just barely formed a knuckle to knock on the door, when the door flung open, and her cousin flew out, crying out, "Guren! You're safe!"

Futaba was shorter than her, possibly due to lack of exercise and outdoor time. She wore black-rimmed glasses over her brown eyes, and her bright orange-dyed hair nearly reached her hips. She wore a pair of headphones on her, a black tank top, and striped pajama bottoms.

"Hey, Futaba. Fancy seeing you bolt out of your room like-." She stopped as she felt the vibrations and heard the sobbing from her cousin. She gripped her waist as if believing that if she let go, she would disappear again.

"I…I was so scared!" she bawled, "You had no idea how scared I was! I…I don't want to lose you like I lost mom!"

Guren was startled that she would compare to her disappearance to Futaba's mom, Wakaba Isshiki, and her death. She barely even talked about her mom's death around her, as that was a subject that brought back too much pain and agony, specifically around the aftermath of her mom's death.

"I did everything I could to try and contact you." Futaba continued, "I even tried tracking your phone by hacking into the GPS device on it, but I couldn't find you. Where were you all this time?!"

"I…" Guren started, but she wasn't sure how to reply. She took a few seconds to try and come up with an excuse, but couldn't think of any that Futaba could see through. Finally, she answered, "I…can't say for certain myself."

"Why? Did you not know where you were before coming home?" Futaba asked, looking up at her in worry.

"Believe me when I say I was not sure where I ended up for a while, or how I got there." her cousin stated, bending down to be at eye-level, "However, rest assured when I tell you that I am back, and I'll always come back to you, no matter where I am."

These words seemed to do the trick. Though she had many questions, Futaba wiped away the tears on her face, and nodded in understanding. Guren always kept her word when it comes to family, especially involving her being with Futaba. The two were inseparable, especially for the past two years, when she was adopted by Sojiro. Yes, she was adopted, so she wasn't really part of his or Guren's family.

"W-Well, as long as you promise that, then I can let you off, this time." the short girl stated, trying to act like an adult to her.

Guren chuckled as she answered, "Very well then. It's a promise." She raised her pinky finger to her cousin, who held her's out, and they gave the pinky swear for one another. It was as if they were less cousins and more sisters, with Guren being the eldest of course.

For the rest of the day, Guren spent all of her time at Sojiro's place, playing with Futaba any way she could. Guren played many of Futaba's favorite songs on the piano they had at home, while even making her rice balls for lunch. Futaba took Guren's phone, making sure the GPS tracking system worked on it right. She was incredibly gifted at her hacking and programming skills, so it didn't take too long. She handed it back to her, finding no problems, other than finding that new app on her phone a bit strange. However, before she could elaborate, the exhaustion of everything caught up to her, and she collapsed, falling fast asleep. This was normal, due to her lack of physical strength.

Sojiro returned home later that evening, making Guren his specialty curry for her. It was incredibly delicious, though Sojiro did try to interrogate her on where she was. She responded similarly to what she told Futaba, stating that she had no clue how or where she ended up, and finally came up with an excuse that it was a really strange case of sleep-walking. While Sojiro wasn't 100% convinced, he wasn't denying the fact, either. Still, he decided to let it go, and let her go for the evening to rest up, jokingly adding she should bolt herself to the bed this time. Laughing at this, Guren returned to her apartment, where she got serious about what she really went through. She took out a notebook and jotted down some things that had happened to her today, trying to make sense with what had occurred.

"Okay. Let's go over what happened today…" she started to tell herself, "This morning, it was the same as every other morning, until I walked out the door and saw snow all over the streets. Not only that, the streets, which were usually busy, turned up empty, with some shops closed or boarded shut and people walking sitting around in rags, almost like we're in the middle of some war or in the time of poverty. This includes my own uncle and cousin. Then after that, Itsuki appeared in a royal carriage with bodyguards and slaves around him. And as if that wasn't weird enough, what happened after that…"

Guren thought back to when she had summoned out the knight and lion. "There was that voice in my head, a painful headache, and some flames. With the latter were that weird knight and black lion. But... who was that knight? Where did that lion come from? Speaking of where, thinking back, my clothes... also changed, didn't they? And the rapier too. Was I always that skilled with it? It felt natural."

Soon as she saw she was getting off topic, or soon to be, Guren shook her head and continued looking at her notes. "Anyway, after that, when I made my escape, my vision- no, I don't think it was my vision. It was my surroundings. They seemed distorted before changing back into the Yongen-Jaya I knew. And from the looks of people's faces, it didn't look like they knew about what happened before then. From what Makoto and Sojiro said, they had been looking for me all morning. In Sojiro's case, it was all night, too. But... how can that be possible? I was in my room all last night; I didn't set foot out of this building after the small incident yesterday. And I know Sojiro enough to know he wouldn't lie about me suddenly being gone. No one would ever do that."

She looked to her smartphone sitting on the table next to her, "What's more, Futaba told me that she couldn't even track me down using my phone's GPS. But how was that possible? I was clearly in broad daylight, out in the streets. I should've had a signal right then and there. There was no way Futaba wouldn't have noticed me!"

Guren took a few moments to take in the notes she wrote down. Even though they were her notes and she had experienced what she had written down, she still couldn't believe it herself. After a while, she scratched her scalp furiously with both hands, messing up her hair.

"Ugh. I can't make sense of any of this!" she exclaimed, "There's no logical explanation of what I just went through. The only thing I can think of is that I went through something supernatural. But that's-."

She cut herself off when she said that, realizing something. "Wait a second. I think Itsuki said something along that line of though. I think he said…"

 _"If I recall, the you in the other world has a son, as well. This is my world. I can do what I want here."_

"'Other world'? 'My world'?" she echoed, "And let's not forget my pho-" A light bulb went off on her head as she realized one other thing. "My phone! This all happened last night, apparently. The last thing I did last night before going to sleep was…"

Taking out her phone, Guren looked at the mystery app that Futaba noticed before on her phone, and saw that it was indeed used to search for a location of some sort. She opened it up, and looked at the search history. The only one on the history showed three things.

"'Itsuki Kato', 'monarchy', 'Yongen-Jaya.'" she read, pondering for a second, "Earlier it said that I returned to the real world, didn't it? So then... is this some kind of portal to that other world? Though from the looks of it, it's only accessible if three conditions are met." Guren looked at the set of words, and the button on the screen that told her that she would like to go to this location. However, she was hesitant.

 _'Do I want to go back? If I do, I'll definitely be heading into a world of trouble,'_ she thought. _'Then again, my life is full of them in the first place. Plus...'_

Her thoughts went to Itsuki's words in the other world. "This is my world." "How's this for a report? A desperate woman sells her own son's organs for cash!"

 _'If my hypothesis is correct, does that mean what happens in that world can happen in this one?'_ she asked herself, ' _No, if that was true, then Sojiro and Futaba both wouldn't have a roof over their heads. By the looks of the app, considering this location has Itsuki's name, it would mean it focuses mainly on him. Could that mean that if something happens to him in that world, it could it also affect him in this one? If that were true, then if I can convince the Itsuki in the other world to call off the debt, the real one can actually call it off. Course, he's got all those weird creatures that were with him. I'm not sure if it can work, but it's the best solution I got for now.'_

Though it was a risk, and something she was just building from a bunch of 'ifs', she decided to go with the only approach possible; learn as you go. With that mindset, Guren activated the app. As she did so, the world started to distort all around her. When the distortion ended, she looked out the window and saw snow on the ground.

"I cannot believe I am actually doing this," she muttered to herself.

Turning away from the window, she walked down to the entrance of the building. As she did so, she noticed the full-body mirror. Looking into it, she noticed she was back in the outfit from earlier. "Huh? These are... the clothes from earlier." She pointed out, seeing her mask, then looking down herself, examining every part of her, and even striking a few poses.

After a while, Guren couldn't help but notice... "I look good in these. And the mask too." As she moved the mask, she saw that there was what seemed like a gap between the face and the mane. Removing it, it was revealed that the mask was actually in two parts. "A two-part mask? Never see those every day." Guren put the mask back on, "Okay. Now to get to business."

Leaving her apartment, Guren noticed some of the suited men patrolling the streets and quickly hid in the shadows. Deciding that walking out in the open would be too risky, she took to the side street, and noticed her apartment's fire escape metal stairs that led to the roof. "Upwards and onwards, I guess…" she told herself, using nearby crates to grab the sliding ladder that hung underneath the stairs, and shimmied herself up it.

When she arrived at the rooftop, Guren looked around, hoping to find something that would hint out where Itsuki was or where he would be staying. Lo and behold, she spotted a mansion buildings away, one that didn't exist in the real world.

 _'Well, I guess the biggest thing out of place in this town should be the best place to start.'_ she sarcastically thought, _'Let's go_.'

With her target in front of her, Guren jumped from one building to another to get to her destination. As she landed on one building halfway there, however, she heard the sound of a door opening and quickly hid. Peeking out from her hiding place, she saw one of the men exiting the door to the rooftops, equipped with a flintlock rifle, like the ones she saw before.

 _'Just great,'_ she thought, gritting her teeth. She really didn't want to deal with any enemies at the moment. But with how things were, it seemed to her that it couldn't be helped. Besides, if she were to escape to the real world now, she wouldn't be able to get back home, since her athletic abilities only exists in this alternative world. Also, she would rather not explain why she suddenly appeared on someone's roof.

Silently taking her rapier out of its scabbard, she snuck out of her hiding spot and rushed at the unaware man. The moment her weapon made contact, though, what happened next wasn't what she hoped for. Black ooze from earlier came out of his mask and took on a different form. Guren quickly jumped back and saw that the man turned into a Silky.

"You know. When I jabbed you with the rapier, you changing into a girl was the least I had expected to happen," she joked, "And you also have green skin. That ain't normal, either."

Whether s/he didn't find it funny or had no funny bone, Guren didn't know nor care, but the monster casted an ice spell, much like the Genbu had that morning. Guren dodge-rolled out of the way and dashed towards the monster once more. Just as she stabbed the monster right in the center of her chest, it breathed out gas on her face. Guren covered her mouth with her free hand and distanced herself from the now dead monster, as it faded away. Waving what remains of the gas away, Guren steadied herself, feeling a little light headed from breathing in a bit of it earlier.

 _'What was that about?'_ she wondered, referring to the vapor. _'Doesn't look like it did much to me. Don't feel my face melting. Although…'_

"Hey!" She heard a voice call out to her from another building and looked to see two of Itsuki's guys facing her. She was about to head to cover when she tripped on her feet, and her vision blurred. Drowsiness was starting to consume her.

 _'What the...? That gas... What did... it do?'_ Gunshots were heard, but none hit her. The next thing she saw before she blacked out, someone else arrived on the building the shooters were on and attacked them.

It almost felt like a short time passed by before she woke up once more. When she was coming to, the first thing she felt was someone repeatedly, lightly, slapping her cheek, waking her up.

"Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey," she repeatedly heard. A groan escaped from her mouth, causing the person slapping her and calling her to stop doing so. "Are you coming to?"

"Yeah... I am..." she forced out of her mouth. Opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was a big man's face.

Assuming the worst, she did what her instincts told her to do; deliver an uppercut. The punch she gave knocked the guy back with a sharp "Ouch!". She rose herself to her feet as the man moaned. "Oh! ... I'm going to feel that for a few days..." he said with a strained voice.

Upon further inspection, Guren saw she had attacked someone who didn't seem to be one of Itsuki's men, nor was he one of the fake hobos. What gave it away? The slightly obese and muscular mountain of a man with short, bristly black hair and slitted eyes, but no mask. He wore a black, long-sleeved shirt, blue jeans and black tennis shoes. Not a suit like the monster-changed bodyguards, nor rags like the people whose lives were ruined by Itsuki or soon-to-be. He looked like an everyday kind of guy…if guys were so tall, you don't even reach their shoulders.

The guy Guren attacked slowly got up, in which she responded by having her rapier in her hands, ready to fight if need be. He then placed both hands on his head and, with an audible crack, brought his head down to meet her at eye level.

' _Who the hell is this guy?!'_ she wondered, _'Is he a friend or foe?'_

"You pack a mean punch for someone so short. But I'm glad you're okay at least," he stated with a soft smile. "Although... I don't think I've seen you before. You certainly don't look like the Shadows here. And you're also not the victim of this Palace's ruler. By the look of the mask and that attire, I'd say you're a Persona user, ain't ya?"

Confused as she was with his observation, Guren kept silent and continued to glare at the man before her, not trusting him one bit.

"Keeping silent, huh? Well, I guess you have the right to remain silent. Even in a world like this, you never know who'd be listening in, whether it be a Shadow, a cognition, or someone else. Believe me, I know. Though, I think you can do better without the rapier. I'm not an enemy."

Despite the claim, Guren tightened her grip on her weapon, keeping her eyes on him.

"Quite a cautious one as well, I see." he chuckled, "I guess if a guy like me suddenly appeared before someone like you, I'd be wary of him, as well. Not a bad trait to have here, especially with what you have."

Guren raised a brow at the last statement, wondering what he meant. The man noticed the expression and said, "I may have seen what you did earlier today. Girl, you're a special one. Most Persona users can only use one Persona at a time. But you? You summoned out two."

 _'Persona? Does he mean Alanna and that lion?'_ she wondered.

"I can tell, based on what I saw, that you are new to the Metaverse, like a newborn kitten opening her eyes to the world, not sure of how to navigate here." the man continued, "I'm sure you have many questions about the Metaverse and your newfound powers. I'll be glad to answer all your questions, but first, let's lighten the hostility around here by having you lower your weapon."

Guren's stance and expression remained unchanged. Seeing his words not convincing her, he sighed, "You this high-strung? Come on, little lady. Ease up. I may be big, but I don't do any harm to innocent folks like yourself. Truth be told, I am kind of a softie. Look, how 'bout we start by introducing ourselves to one another. My name is Daichi Suzuki."

 _'The size is not the problem, adult,'_ Guren thought, but didn't bother to say out loud. Instead, she just kept her glare at him.

Seeing that he was not at all making progress with Guren, Daichi sighed again and turned. "You know what, I take it back. You're way to cautious for your own good. What's it gonna take for you to-." He stopped talking, as he felt the blade of Guren's rapier poking his neck behind him.

"Don't move," she said at last.

"Oh? So you ain't a mute after all!" Daichi happily said. He let out a short laugh and said, "And her I was, worryin' over nothin'!"

 _'Worried? An adult? Yeah right,'_ Guren mentally scoffed.

Once he stopped laughing, he didn't move his head, but his eyes looked back as he followed, "Though I get you find me as an enemy, there's no need for it. After all, by the looks of things, you want to take down the ruler of this Palace. I believe the feller's name is Itsuki Kato." Guren eyes widened at his words. "You're not the only one. This man ruined too many lives and has toyed with half the amount. From what I saw, you're one of them, aren't you?"

Guren looked down at his claim. She couldn't admit he was right, but she couldn't deny it either. Still, she quickly regained herself, keeping her rapier at the man's neck.

"I can help you. See, I've been venturing through the Metaverse for a long, long time." Daichi continued, "I've delved into one cognition to the next, and have tackled dozens of Palaces in my life. I've ventured in his mansion and got through half of it. The problem, here, is other half of the mansion. It's pretty much impossible to continue without the aid of someone else. With my big size, I can only scout so much. The cognitions of people around here ain't gonna help me out. I was pretty much in a pickle till I saw you. You wanna know how to change Itsuki? Then help me out."

Guren looked back up and inched her rapier closer to Daichi. "'Change Itsuki'?" she echoed, "There's no changing him. All I have to do is either make him forget about the debt my uncle and many others 'owed' him and make him fix the lives of those he ruined. Either that, or I'll kill him and put an end to this."

"Now, now. There's no need for that. Especially the killing part." Daichi told her, slowly turning around until he faced her once again, the tip of the rapier pointing at his Adam's apple now. "There is a way you can change him. Not only that, but if you look at it from a malicious point of view, it can make him pay for his crimes."

Though hidden behind her mask, he knew she was interested in hearing what it was. "I'm listening…" she muttered.

"To change Itsuki, we need to attack his Palace. In other words, that mansion over there." Daichi started, pointing his thumb to the said mansion, "Of course, that's easier said than done. It's not as easy as destroying it to smithereens; there are other requirements involved. We must get the Treasure hidden deep within the mansion and defeat Itsuki himself. Trust me, there were times when I tried to sneak treasure out myself, but the ruler of the palace always catch on and then I have to beat 'em close to death. After that, it's just telling them off once they know how tough you are, taking the Treasure, and the Palace will start to disappear."

"And what does the mansion have to do with changing Itsuki?" Guren questioned.

"A Palace is a manifestation of a person's distorted desire. The mansion symbolizes Itsuki's rule over other people. A man living in luxury, while poverty happens all throughout here. If his distorted desires were to disappear, Itsuki's desires would as well. Course, this doesn't make the crimes he committed vanish, but the weight of what he had done will be overwhelming for him, to the point where he turns himself in and rights his own wrongs."

Guren's eyes widened as she heard this explanation. She then narrowed them as she realized, "Why are you telling me so much?"

"As I said, we have the same enemy. If you or someone close to you is being played in Itsuki's debt, I assume it means you're on a time limit. Why else would you come back so soon, apart from sheer curiosity."

He stepped away from Guren almost casually, not even caring about the rapier she had pointing at him, and walked towards the edge of the roof, looking at the mansion. "I've seen people like him during my time as a Phantom Thief and want to stop as many as I could, change as many hearts as possible." he stated, "We both can benefit from each other. With my experience and current knowledge of the mansion, and your unique ability and your petite and nimble figure, I bet we can tackle that Palace, no problem. They do say two heads are better than one, after all."

She didn't want to admit it, but Daichi had a point. Right now, she has less than a week before Itsuki makes a false report on Cafe Leblanc and ruin her family. The only way she could stop him was to be a... Phantom Thief, as Daichi said. He has more experience than her and more knowledge of the palace than she did. Though she didn't trust him, she knew she couldn't clear the mansion alone, not with the possibility of guards around the mansion. "... If I see you try anything stupid, I'll ram my rapier through you," she threatened, sheathing her rapier again.

"Don't worry. I won't," he promised, turning with a gentle smile on his face, "Now then. Let's get going to the mansion."

As the two silently walked over the rooftops to the mansion, Guren kept a watchful eye on Daichi. He was surprisingly light on his feet for a man his size. The man was clearly use to this way of life. Guren had thousands of questions right now, but she wasn't sure if she should ask them or not.

As they were about halfway there from where they started, she finally asked, "So tell me something. If you use a Persona, why do you look so normal, while I look like…this?"

Daichi looked back at her, then answered, "I've trained myself to hide my identity as a threat from the Palace ruler. See, if the ruler of the Palace sees you as a threat, and you awakened to your Persona, that is the kind of look you gain. Call it a symbol of your rebellious spirit that wishes to change the Palace ruler's heart. But with it, you can fight the Shadows here."

"So this look demonstrates my rebellious nature, huh?" she asked, looking at her clothing again, "And I do remember fighting with those Persona characters of mine. Well, I do look good in it, that's for sure."

"True, though I have seen looks that are much prettier, and still as inconspicuous." he pointed out, leaping to the next roof.

"Hey, were you dissing me?!" she asked angrily, racing after him. He only answered with a laugh.

"So, while we're on the topic, you called those guys of Itsuki's Shadows. Mind elaborating on that?" she asked him.

"Shadows are basically the residence of this world. Creatures formed from people's hearts." the man explained, looking down to see a couple passing by, "They come in all kinds of forms. Some easy to take down like the ones you dealt with. Others are far more dangerous than them, and far out of your league. That's why it's best to avoid a fight if possible, but if you want the experience, then go for it."

"I…think I'll save the fighting for when I need the energy." Guren cautiously decided, avoiding the notice of the Shadow guards.

It took a while, but the two arrived at the entrance to the mansion. Guren noticed there were no snow at the building; the trees had leaves, the bushes and shrubs had flowers growing, it was the exact opposite of what was going on to the rest of the cognitive world. And it made her sick, knowing how highly Itsuki thought of himself.

"It's sick to look at, ain't it?" Daichi asked her.

"Why do people like him think this way, I have no idea." Guren growled, "Then again, I don't know many adults who don't think this way."

"Well, I know several who aren't this high and mighty about themselves." Daichi stated, walking away, "Come on. I know where to go to get inside this guys' Palace. Follow me."

She followed Daichi to the right of the gates. The big guy moved some rather loose bars over, making room for them to cross over, especially for himself. The two stayed in the shadows the trees and bushes provided for them, hiding from the sight of some guards. Daichi looked back and placed a finger on his lip, indicating Guren to stay silent, in which she nodded to as they both snuck past the men.

They got to the side of the building, by a low window with a dark room, in contrast to most of the lit-up house. Daichi licked his hand before placing it on a glass part. He lifted his hand from it, revealing a loose, circular hole in the window. After removing it, he reached in and unlocked their way in. When their secret entrance was open, Daichi gestured Guren to enter first, in which she did, and he followed her in.

Guren saw the room they had entered was a basement filled with crates, cages and drapes, but no door. "I assume there's a secret entrance of some sort in here?" she asked as he positioned the glass back in place again.

"You guess right," Daichi answered, moving one crate to reveal a switch. With one flick, a hidden door opened up in the wall, revealing a set of stairs going up. "Ladies first." he gestured to her.

"No, I insist." Guren retorted, not taking a step towards the stairs. She was not intending to have him walk from behind in a narrow passageway as this. Daichi chose not to argue, and went up first, followed by Guren.

For the most part, the journey was pretty much the same. The two of them sneaking around the mansion with Daichi leading and revealing hidden switches along the way. Some revealed secret passages, some triggered traps, some deactivated whatever security system they ran into. Mind you, they didn't activate all the switches; Daichi was explaining to Guren the differences between each of them, for if and when she dare enter a Palace alone. And though Guren didn't want to admit it, they were good lessons he was giving her. She was learning a lot about being a Phantom Thief.

Eventually, they arrived at a normal-looking and snuck in. Upon entering, Guren saw the room distort from what seemed like a small library to a meeting room of sort.

"This is what's called the safe room," Daichi muttered. "Here, as you may have noticed, this part of the mansion is kind of distorted with how it really is in the real world. That means the cognition here is weak, and the Shadows won't come in here. We can catch our breaths, or just return to the real world and come back later. "

"Why not finish the other half of the Palace now?" Guren demanded, annoyed by being halted from continuing onward.

"As much as I admire your dedication, it must be getting late right now. I may not have anything planned, but I'm sure you have something to do tomorrow. Friends and family might worry about you if you don't return to the real world." Guren looked down, thinking on how exactly right he was. He wasn't gonna let Makoto or the rest of her family worry about her again. Plus, she didn't want to involve them with something this dangerous. This was something she and she alone should do.

"Don't worry, we can continue this later." he assured her, "You may be on the clock, but you still have some time, don't you? Time before Itsuki does what he said he'll do."

"Yeah. Five days to go after today." she answered, feeling the regret to giving up today, "Fine. I'll come back at night. Meet you at the entrance."

"Sounds like an idea," he agreed. With that, the two rushed out the mansion the same way they came in and went their separate ways. Daichi left Guren's side as she used her app to return to the real world once more.

* * *

Throughout the day, instead of working in Leblanc, in which Sojiro closed for the day for reasons, Guren brought her keyboard to Shibuya, hoping to make some money playing some songs there. She would've spent the day sleeping in or finding another job, but how could she do either when she had to worry about what Itsuki would do and with her reputation? Besides, playing music helps her relax and think better anyway.

It was the middle of the afternoon when she was still playing her piano. When she was playing a couple of songs earlier, she didn't think she'll be making much. One look at the keyboard case right by her, though, and she was proven wrong. Not only that, she was also getting the attention of many people walking by. Good attention filled with impressed looks and awe, like at Cafe Leblanc. Seeing this made her relax even more.

After Guren finished playing a song, she decided to stop there for the day, especially after seeing the amount of yen she made for the day. Everyone applauded for her performance, in which she bowed in response. While some wanted an encore, she said she had prior engagements to take care of. Some left her some more money as they left, in which she was extremely grateful for.

"Well, so much for going to study." a familiar voice caught Guren's ears as she put her instrument away. Looking up, she saw Makoto looking down at her.

"Makoto? What are you doing here?" she asked, standing up with her keyboard case and stand on her back.

"Well, I was planning on going to the library to study, when I heard a familiar piano music on my way there." Makoto answered, smiling.

Guren blushed a bit as she felt guilty for distracting her best friend with her music. However, that was the least of her worries as Makoto leaned close to her and, for some reason, whispered, "Don't ask questions and follow my lead."

Hearing that confused Guren, for she never heard her best friend say anything that urgent before. Next she knew, Makoto grabbed her by the hand and dragged her away from the area.

"Wha-?! Makoto?!" she gasped. When she was about to ask her why she was dragging her, she heard a slight scream behind her and looked. Imagine her shock and rage when she saw Itsuki tailing them. "That guy again?!" Guren questioned. Part of her wanted to confront the man, but that part was being pulled along by Makoto as she tightened her grip on her, and picked up speed till she was running side-by-side with her best friend.

"I made sure to see what he looked like online just in case." Makoto explained as they ran, "I saw him watching you as I was approaching. He's definitely keeping an eye on you."

"So not only is he a journalist, he's a stalker?!" Guren questioned, "That guy so deserves to get his butt whooped by your aikido. Although, knowing him, he might turn that into a story about you assaulting an innocent civilian."

"He's that twisted?!" Makoto questioned in horror.

 _'The word 'distorted' more fits his description.'_ Guren thought, thinking about his desires.

Both teens were avoiding civilians as they ran, trying their best to lose the crazy reporter chasing them. It wasn't easy, but they managed to lose him in a large crowd. Guren and Makoto were currently in a fast food place called Big Bang Burger, taking a breather from all the running they had done.

"I never thought I'd get in another chase with you," the soon Council President said, for this wasn't the first time this had happened.

"I never thought I'd have to get in a chase two days after being let out of jail," Guren added, "And it was your sister who always told me to stay out of trouble. Never really works, since it always comes to me." Both girls laughed at the fact... which was then interrupted by stomach growl... from Guren's stomach.

"You skipped breakfast and didn't have lunch yet?" Makoto asked in an amused tone, knowing full well this was not the first time she had done this.

"You know me so well," an embarrassed Guren reply.

"Well, least we picked the right place to rest." her BF pointed out, "You want me to treat you? I know you need that money for more important things."

When Guren was about to answer, from the corner of her eyes, she saw a familiar woman ordering take out at the front. Her eyes widened when she realize it was the very same woman from back in Itsuki's cognitive world.

"You okay?" Makoto asked, noticing Guren's expression.

"I-I'm okay. Sorry." she apologized, "Why don't you get us something to go, okay? I'll meet up with you in a second."

While Makoto went to get a couple of their burgers to go, Guren, recalling the situation the woman was in, took out some money from her case and wordlessly approached the woman.

"Excuse me," she called, getting her attention. Guren paused for a second, then placed the money she pulled out, and placed it in front of her, much to her confusion. "Here. Take it." she told her, "Something tells me you'll be needing it more than I do." Without waiting for a response, she went back to her as Makoto watched her from afar, seeing what she had done.

"Guren. What...?" Makoto tried to ask.

"Sorry, Makoto. I just realized, I still haven't gotten myself prepared for school." she lied, "It's starting in a couple of days. I should at least get that done before I make money. Besides…" She looked back at the lady, who was watching Guren from afar, and mentally added, _"I know she's going through a similar case as my family. One I hope to free her of, as well."_

* * *

The second Guren got home, she dropped everything in her room, bringing only her smartphone, and raced out of her room. She headed to the area where she knew she would be close to the mansion in the other world. She readied the app on her smartphone, muttering, "I am so serious about changing that Itsuki's heart, now! That big guy better give me more info on this place, or I'm gonna scream in the middle of that mansion to lure those Shadows in myself!" She activated the app, and after enduring the distortions, she found herself right in front of the mansion, just as she planned. She already knew her attire had changed, so she ignored it.

"You're early," a voice spoke, and Daichi appeared out of nowhere right next to her, still wearing the same civilian clothing.

"That's my line," she replied.

"I never left. The Metaverse is my home." Daichi stated, spreading his arms out to the surrounding, "Now then, what say we get back to business?" Guren nodded in response, and the two went back into the mansion once more.

Like last time, as they searched and snuck through the whole building, Daichi was giving Guren more lessons. This time, he went into more details about Personas and Shadows.

Guren learned that Shadows can't instantly be defeated by a simply sneak attack. If she wanted to defeat them, she had to do it properly and fight them. There was a way to instantly kill them by ripping their mask off, but she had to be much stronger than the level she was now, and better trained, as well.

As for the Personas, which were the incarnation of their rebellious soul, just like the clothes she wore, she learned that they can be summoned if she called upon them from her mask. Despite this, even though she was able to summon out her knight Persona, Alanna, for some reason, the lion Persona wasn't responding to her command, mainly because she didn't know its name. Daichi questioned why she never asked the lion for its' name. She tried, but got no response, so she just decided to learn as time went on.

She also learned that both Personas and Shadows have their own elements and weaknesses to some of those elements, which meant she had to play smart around foes her Persona would be at a disadvantage against, for it would also mean she would be at a disadvantage against them. Fortunately, Daichi had some elemental items that, when used on a foe, cause all kinds of damage. He gave Guren one of each of the following; a Flame Bottle, a Frozen Spray, an Air Cannon, and a Stun Gun. She decided to use them wisely, and only use them when in a dire situation.

Both the learning and physical experience were doing her a lot of good for her, especially with the progress they were making. At some point, however, they arrived at what seemed to be the ball room and saw quite a handful of guards below them, all standing in front of a door.

"Well, Senpai, what are we gonna do now?" Guren whispered.

"Let me ask you this, first. Have you ever used a firearm of any kind before?" Daichi asked out of nowhere.

"I played sniper video games, if that counts," Guren answered, wondering where he was going with this.

"Good enough." All of a sudden, he handed her a sniper rifle. "One of my friends gave this to me for safety, even though I'm not that good with these sort of guns. But it's the best thing that can help us in this case." Guren looked perplexed as she looked at the large gun in her hands. It was clearly a model, based on how light it was.

"Where the heck did you get something like this from." she asked, knowing she didn't see the sniper rifle anywhere on him when she met up with Daichi. So where in the world…?

"Long story. In any case, you should shoot at one of them and get their attention. After that, I'll get down there and distract those guys. Take the shot when you see the chance."

 _'He's totally avoiding the question,'_ she thought with a slight sweat drop. She looked at the rifle again, then added, "This thing is way too light to be a real sniper rifle."

"Never mind that. Just shoot it, and you'll see what happens." Daichi assured her, and he slowly walked away.

Letting the matter pass, she lied down on the floor, setting the gun in place. From the scope, she could see she had a good aim of one of the Shadows. Looking back at Daichi, who was silently making his way to the other side of the terrace, where the guards were, she saw him nod at her, confirming that he was ready to go at any time. Nodding back, she looked into the scope once more and pulled the trigger.

BANG!

With a loud 'bang', much to Guren's shock, a bullet was shot out of the firearm and made its way straight into the Shadow's head. The rest of the Shadows looked at their direction and took out their own guns. Before they had a chance to fire, Daichi dropped in on them... literally for one of them. The remaining three changed into their true forms, consisting of the Genbu, Silky and Kelpie.

For someone who was suppose to be a Persona user, Daichi was doing quite well against the trio of monsters with his bare hands. He managed to punch the Kelpie's head into the ground, dazing it, and avoided getting struck by an icy attack from the Silky. Guren knew he wasn't going to handle the three of them alone.

She aimed her next bullet at the Genbu's main head and fired. Like before, the bullet struck true and killed off the two-headed Shadow.

The Kelpie regained itself, and noticed the second shot and charged right at hidden teen. Luckily for her, she was prepared for it. Her hand on her rapier, she instantly took the blade out, avoiding the creature's charge attack as she did so, and jammed it right through the eyes, causing it to scream in pain and dissipate. As soon as it disappeared, she sheathed her rapier back and returned to her sniping position.

As she saw Daichi handling himself against the Silky, she also saw the Shadow he landed on earlier revealing its true form, a Saki Mitama. She quickly took aim and fired yet another headshot, knocking it down and out.

By that time, Daichi was done with his opponent, punching the lady Shadow so hard, she slammed into a column and disappeared into nothingness. The big guy looked around for more opponents. Upon seeing the coast was clear of all enemies, he gave Guren the okay signal. The girl took the sniper rifle in her arms and joined him down below.

"Wow. You're really good with that thing. And that's an understatement," he commented. "I saw all your shots. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're a natural sniper."

Guren was quite flattered at the compliments and looked away, blushing slightly. "I still can't believe this thing was working like a real gun." she pointed out, examining the gun in her hands.

"This is a cognitive world. As long as the Shadows believe it's a real gun, then it acts like a real one." Daichi stated, "In the end, Shadows are simple-minded creatures who don't know any better."

"Wow. That's a pretty handy thing bit of info right there." Guren stated, handing Daichi back the gun, in which he pushed back to her.

"Keep it. Like I said, I'm not good with a sniper rifle. And you're a natural at it," he told her.

With a nod, she placed her new weapon over her shoulder. It took a moment before she realized the weapon suddenly felt like it wasn't there anymore, and looked to see it vanished. "How did it…" she started.

"I still have trouble figuring that out." Daichi answered, waving off the sudden disappearance of the weapon, "All I know is that if you need it, it appears in your hands. Just a cognitive world thing."

"I get the gun being real thing, but it disappearing and reappearing is just weird." Guren muttered.

They both looked at the door the Shadows were protecting. Both went on different sides of the door. Daichi took the lead once more, slowly and silently opening the door to a clear hallway.

After that, the two didn't have any difficulty with any Shadows they had to fight against. Basically, Guren would be swift enough to rip off the masks to start their fight. Once it starts, Daichi would be, in RPG classifications, the tank of the pair, distracting the enemies while Guren provides support either with her sniping skills or with her swift and precise strikes. All in all, the pair were quite a force to be reckon with.

There were also times during their continuing search that there were places Daichi couldn't get through due to his size, and had to talk Guren through with what she had to do.

The first was when they had to get past lasers across the hall, with the switch being on the other side. So to say... it was not at all fun for Guren. Especially since the lasers weren't warning lasers. Why was that the problem? She may have accidentally tripped on her feet and almost fell face-first into a laser. ALMOST! Girl managed to save herself by using her sniper rifle as a pole for support and kept her distance from the red light.

Next one was when they had to open up a security locked door. According to the map Daichi had with him, there was a way to the control room, which was on the other side of the door, and it was through the vent. It was easier than the lasers, that was for certain, except when she had to fight the Shadows alone.

Long story short... it was a tough battle. That time, she was facing a Succubus and an Incubus. They were both tough opponents and had incredible teamwork. Guren was close to losing, had she not remember that Shadows have a weakness. And fortunately for her, her Persona could use a Bless spell called Hama, weakening the Incubus while she shot at the Succubus with her sniper rifle, also greatly weakening her. After that, she finished the two off and deactivated the door, giving Daichi access to the other side. He had a couple of things called Life Stones, instructing her on how they could heal her, which she did.

Later on, after going through all those trials and tribulations, the two of them finally arrived at their one destination.

"This is the room?" Guren asked her mentor. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she was starting to warm up to Daichi, realizing he was not like most adults in the world.

"Yeah," he answered. "The one room Itsuki's treasure has to be in; the study hall." He looked at the map and said, "According to this map, this is the last room of this mansion. If the treasure's not in there, then that has to mean there's a secret room somewhere that we don't know of yet. Let's hope that's not the case, since it took me a long while to find those other secrets before."

"Well, with my luck, it's more than likely we have to do more searching." Guren warned him, "Let's just pray this isn't one of my bad luck moments." At that, the two barged into the room.

Within the study hall, there was no sign of life. Books and written reports were scattered everywhere. Pictures of people and places were hung, stapled, or taped on the walls or in the books. Guren even noticed some files scattered about. But one thing that caught her attention the most was a cloud of some sort.

"There it is," she heard Daichi muttered, grinning at the sight of it.

"That's the treasure?" she asked, confused. When she thought treasure, she was expecting something more than just a cloud.

The big guy noticed her confusion. "Oh yeah. Final lesson of the day. A ruler's treasure is basically the source of their desires. It doesn't have a physical form at the moment. As such, the treasure itself won't take a form unless the person is consciously aware of their desires being stolen."

"So in other words, unless if we make the treasure materialize, all we did was scout the whole mansion for nothing," Guren summed up, slightly irritated.

"Oh! You catch on fast! That's good!" Daichi answered, patting her shoulder, though with enough strength to make her knees buckle.

Ignoring the compliment, she then asked, "So how are we going to materialize it? I don't suppose telling him 'we're gonna steal your desires' is gonna do any good, right?"

"As a matter of fact, it will." he answered

Guren was shocked to hear she was right, and questioned, "Wait, I was right about that?! Okay, how are we gonna do that? Tell him directly?"

"Not exactly." Daichi answered, "Tell me, have you ever watched tv shows involving phantom thieves? You know the ones who like to send calling cards, warning people of what they are gonna steal?" The teen nodded at the adult's question. "That's what we're going to do to Itsuki. We'll send him a calling card, make him aware that his inner desires are at risk, and soon enough, the treasure will come to be. However... when we send him the card, we only have a short span of time while it is materialized. At the very best, twenty-four hours."

Feeling slightly pressured, Guren nodded at the risk they would be taking with the calling card.

"All right. We've secured the infiltration route. All that's left is to write up that card, get it to Itsuki without him knowing who it was from, and then, we finish the mission," Daichi said. "Do you want to do the honors?"

Guren's eyes widened slightly at his question. "W-What?"

"The calling card. This clearly means more to you than it does to me. Especially if you were willing to give up some money for a soon-to-be ruined mother, when you may need it just as much, if this fails. I can give you some ideas to write down on that card, but I'll leave it up to you to make it look good and send it discreetly. So... what do you say?"

The girl didn't know what to say. He was right in saying that changing Itsuki's heart meant a lot to her, but even so, it was a big responsibility. One she'll gladly take. "I-I'll do it!" she answered with confidence.

Daichi smiled at her response and nodded. "In that case, write up a good one. If I recall, Itsuki is a reporter. And from the looks of where this mansion is located in the real world, this must be a news corporation. I suggest after you make that card, you send it to their mailbox somehow." Guren nodded in understanding.

With their next plan set, the two of them exited the mansion. "I'll see you during the theft." Daichi told her, and walked off into the cold streets beyond. Guren used her smartphone to return to the real world once more, and made her way back home.

As soon as she arrived in her apartment, Guren realized something. "Wait a second... How did he know about what I did for that woman?" she wondered. After a while, her stomach growled, and she answered, "No time for that. I'm starving."

* * *

 **Next time: Mia & Haneru, a.k.a Pixie & Kong, now venture into Oda's Palace in search for the Treasure. In there, Kong learns of the reason around Oda's hatred for his father, and as the preparations begin for changing his heart, Nikolo becomes suspicious about Haneru's sudden change of personality, and wonders what he is doing. Will the mother & son pair be able to steal Oda's Treasure, and change his heart?**


	5. Infiltrating the Shogi King's Palace

**Well, another switch-back to the present, featuring Haneru & Mia, now fully prepared to create an infiltration route to the Treasure of Oda. Read & Enjoy!**

* * *

 _(Opening: Life will Change (Persona 5))_

 **(Music intro)**

 _(Starting in a backdrop of a city with gray and black buildings and a red sky, the camera pans through the place, while the white shadows of eleven individuals racing and leaping passed walls. Then the words 'I am thou. Thou art I' form in cryptic newspaper letter cutouts, followed by the title of the series)_

 **It's not a game. I'm not a robot AI challenging you.**

 _(Ren Amamiya steps out of Leblanc, heading to school, with Morgana in his bag. Guren Sakura joins his side as they both leave, and the screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Theives looks, with the names 'Joker' 'Mona' and 'Lioness' under their respective people.)_

 **I'm not a phantom. I'm in your face and I'm here to see it through.**

 _(Mia puts on her shoes as she heads to work, with Haneru racing up behind her, dislodging his slippers and putting on his shoes to go to school. He waves his mom goodbye as the both open the door to walk out. Screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Thieves looks, with the names 'Kong' and 'Pixie' under each of them.)_

 **Right before your eyes, watch us multiply**

 _(Ryuji, Ann, and a silhouetted figure appear in three parts of the screen, then, with a flip of their respective confidant tarot cards, changing into their respective Phantom Thieves attire, with 'Skull' and 'Panther' listed to their respective owners.)_

 **Come to claim our rights - it's time**

 _(Three more silhouettes appear of the three remaining members, which shift to silhouettes of them in their Phantom Thieves outfits like the others.)_

 **As our power grows, trying to stop us shows…**

 _(Inside the interrogation room, Ren looks to Sae Nijima, who glares seriously at him, while she has pictures of victims he and the Phantom Thieves targeted on the table. Ren sees a sparkling blue butterfly pass his eyes, and he closes his eyes)_

 **(You) Might as well go try'n stop time**

 _(In the velvet room, the camera pans through the bars of the cell, past the twin prison wardens to Igor in his seat. He looks up at the protagonist with his usual grin, and the Metaverse Navigation app button appears behind him as he fades away, and the app activates.)_

 **(Song break)**

 _(From an overhead view of the central street of Tokyo, the area starts to shift as it changes to the Metaverse point of view. Tarot cards of every confidant fall down to the ground in the middle of the big street, where the Phantom Thieves stand, ready to go.)_

 **So you know that we're out there, swatting lies in the making.**

 _(Joker leads off summoning Arsene to his side, readying his dagger as he lunges at a masked Shadow, pulling it off and slashing at it. Lioness leaps in, stopping a pair of unknown Shadows with her rapier and stabbing them through the chest with a pair of thrusts.)_

 **Can't move fast without breaking. Can't hold on or life won't change.**

 _(Kong leap onto a head of a Shadow, whacking him in the back with his quarterstaff, knocking him to the ground before turning his staff into swords and making a falling stab onto him. Pixie uses Magaru with a twirl of her scythe, blowing away a bunch of Shadows. All four Persona users draw their guns out, pointing at four Shadows in the center of their circle, and fire at them.)_

 **And our voices ring out, yeah. Took the mask off to feel free.**

 _(Mona in van mode drives the known thieves, with Pixie at the wheel, as they journey through Mementos. They encounter a bunch of the main Shadow versions of human enemies, each transforming into large silhouettes of their respective monster forms, their eyes glowing.)_

 **Fought it out in the debris, now we know that life will change.**

 _(Mona transforms to normal as they all leap up into the air, Joker, Lioness and Kong taking off their masks to reveal their Personas, ready to attack.)_

 **(Music ending)**

 _(The scene shifts to several of their supporters doing their routines, from Sojiro running the Leblanc, to Mishima walking while looking at the Phan-Site on his phone, Akechi being interviewed on television, Takemi writing something at her clinic, to Kawakami teaching her class, Mifune flipping her tarot cards, then flipping over a calling card made by the Phantom Thieves. The scene shifts to a red and black, spiraling backdrop as the card along with all confidant cards fall into an abyss, replaced with the title of the series again.)_

* * *

The sun was almost gone in Toyota. Back at the apartment of the Kurosawa family, Mia was pulling something out from her closet, which she stored most of the moving boxes. She found a pair of boxes, with one of them much longer than the other. Haneru sat on the bed, watching her as she placed the two boxes on the floor between them.

"What is that?" Haneru asked, looking down at the boxes.

"In order for us to tackle Oda's Palace properly, we need to be equipped with more than just the weapons granted to us and our Personas. That's why we need these…" She unveiled one of the boxes, and Haneru was shocked to see something he never expected his mom to have.

"A crossbow?!" Haneru asked, shocked at the sight of the medieval firearm in the box.

"That's right." she answered, taking it out in both hands, "Your father specialized in crossbows. I want you to use it." She gave Haneru the crossbow, who took it in both hands. It had some weight to it as it fell into his lap.

"But why would I need to use a crossbow when I have all sorts of other powers and weapons at my disposal?" Haneru asked, taking up the crossbow and examining it.

"Sometimes, using firearms is a lot more useful than using magic." Mia explained, "Think about it. If you had this on hand, you wouldn't rely on your Persona's electric skills for long range. You could actually do some damage to the Naga before if you had."

Haneru thought back to the last battle he and his mom were involved in, and saw truth in that. His electric attack had no effect on the Shadow, and his melee attacks weren't as effective either. In short, he was at a great disadvantage because of his limited set of moves. "I guess it would make sense that having a crossbow would help in situations like that." he understood, "But where are the bolts to this thing?"

"You gain them every time you enter the Metaverse." Mia explained, "See, since that place is a cognitive reality, if your opponent sees your weapons, and it looks real enough, it will act like a real weapon. However, like all firearms, there is a limited amount of ammo you can use during every visit into the Metaverse."

"Gotcha." Haneru understood, placing the crossbow next to him, "So, you want me to use dad's firearm?"

"I feel you can use it just as well as him." Mia answered, opening up the longer box, "As for me, I specialize in these kinds of firearms." She pulled out something that shocked Haneru even more. It was a sniper rifle, complete with scope on top.

"You never told me you had a sniper rifle on you!" he gasped.

"It's only a model gun, but in the Metaverse, it acts like the real thing." Mia explained, examining it for any signs of damage, "You specialize in an all-around style of combat, balancing melee with magic. I was more support and magic, thanks to Cordelia."

"Oh, right." Haneru understood. He pondered for a second, then asked, "Uh, which Cordelia are you talking about? If my Persona is based on Sarutobi Sasuke, where is yours from?"

"Haven't you read William Shakespeare's 'King Lear'?" Mia asked, looking at him, "Cordelia was one of the king's three daughters, and the one he loved the most. She loved him, as well, and was honest enough not to sugar-coat her love for him. It did leave her banished from her kingdom, but she was better than her two deceptive sisters, and helped her father when he was banished by them."

"Oh…" Haneru understood, mentally telling himself, _"If she knew I was thinking of a video game pegasus rider of the same name, she would kill me."_

"You should keep that hidden until we're prepared to enter the Metaverse again." Mia requested, "We can't really take things like this out in public."

"Right. Gotcha." Haneru understood, taking the crossbow with him into the other room, "I'll rest up, then we can get ready to tackle the Metaverse again, okay?"

He left the room, while Mia watched him leave, then looked down at the rifle in her hand. The only reason she kept it about was to remember the times she had with her husband in that world. The gun reminded her of the courage he gave her every time she went into battle. Now, it was used again, not for Noriaki, or any of her other friends, but for her own son. And though he was not completely like his father, there was no doubt that he was so much like him, particularly at that one moment when they confronted Oda before.

 _"I won't die, you asshole. I refuse to fall to a pitiful man like you. I would be ashamed if I did!"_

She huffed a grin as she stated, "I can't believe he would say the same words his father said a long while back. He has his heart, after all…"

In the other room, Haneru dug underneath his bed, searching for something. "I can't believe I was just given a crossbow like that." he told himself, "I always wanted to use one of those things ever since Linkle. Now, there's just one more thing I want to bring with me… Ah! here it is!"

He dragged himself out from underneath his bed, bringing with him something he remember his grandfather giving him that he thought he never use. It was a polaroid camera, which was a Christmas present he got seven years ago. This same Christmas, his mom got him a smartphone, not the same one as he owned, but it had a camera on it, and it was easier to carry around than the polaroid. Still, he figured it might actually work better than his camera on his phone.

* * *

 _(Flashback)_ Haneru and Mia were sneaking around the halls of Oda's Palace, making their way to what would be the library. He stopped as he noticed a soldier patrolling the pathway before them. He ducked behind a large pot with bamboo growing from it.

"There's a Shadow, Haneru." Mia warned him, hiding behind the corner nearby, "Let's let him sneak past us."

Haneru nodded in agreement, keeping himself hidden in the shadows. As he watched him looking around, he wondered how people would react seeing a creature like this. Figuring he should at least take a picture on his phone, just for the sake of curiosity. He slowly pulled out his phone, and prepped the camera app on it. However, he couldn't seem to get out of the Metaverse app. "What the…" he muttered, trying every option to pull up the camera app, all in vain.

"What are you doing?" Mia questioned him.

"Nothing…" he answered, "Just realized I can't get out of the Metaverse app."

"Probably because we're in the Metaverse right now, you can't use your phone for anything else." Mia answered, "Not that it matters, as you shouldn't fool around on your phone for anything else right now."

"Right…" Haneru moaned, putting his phone back and going back to the issue at hand. _(Flashback ends)_

* * *

"With this polaroid, I can definitely take pictures in that world." he stated, "Let's just hope it works."

He decided to do a trial run, and took a photo of the crossbow on his bed. The flash took effect, and he saw the photo print out of the camera. He took it, and shook it to make the picture come out. Sure enough, when it was dry, he saw the picture of his crossbow on his bed perfectly. "Great! Now to use it in the Metaverse." he decided, "Let's hope it works there."

He placed all the stuff he pulled out of his bed back underneath, put his crossbow on the table where his computer was at, and fell back onto his bed, thinking about what he went through. He was pretty worn out from the battles he had to endure in the Metaverse. Still, now that his mom had awoken her powers to use a Persona, they could go further into Oda's Palace, and find where this 'Treasure' was at.

"I can't wait to go back into that place again." he muttered, "I have a new weapon, mom's gonna join me, and I have a codename now. 'Kong'." He grinned as his eyes started to droop on him. He was really excited about it all, and wanted tomorrow to come all the sooner. He hoped sleep wouldn't be so long tonight, as he closed his eyes, and drifted to his dreams.

* * *

 **March 25**

The morning after, Mia told Haneru she needed to prepared them with a couple things before going to tackle Oda's Palace, so he should wait at home until they were fully prepared. So in the meantime, Haneru decided to stretch himself out by doing some parkour on the rooftop again.

Moments later, Haneru was standing there, with his smartphone, as he set up the song to dance to, and backed away as the music started.

 _(Cue Tribe Cool Crew OST 'Start up! KING'S DREAM')_

The moment the music started, his body moved to the rhythm, his feet pivoting and grooving as he danced to a more hip-hop style. He totally sunk into the music as his mind just went blank and his body moved. He loved these moments, and they were good exercise for him as he grooved away to the music, unaware of the audience he gained at this point.

When the music ended, he panted in exhaustion, wiping his forehead. He then heard the sound of clapping, and turned to see none other than Nikolo there, giving Haneru a round of applause. "You sure do get into that when nothing disturbs you." he pointed out.

"Hey, Nik…" Haneru greeted him, worried slightly, "I thought your mom forbade you from seeing me."

Nikolo slightly looked downcast at this reminder, then added, "Well, mom doesn't know I'm here with you. Besides, I'm sure she'll get over it."

 _"I doubt it…"_ Haneru retorted in his mind, _"Not after what I saw about her in that other world about her."_ He was referring to finding out about Kiya's past in Oda's Palace. It was disturbing to him that he found out she use to be a prostitute, and something he definitely didn't need his mom to tell him not to tell Nikolo.

The two of them sat near the edge of the rooftop, looking up at the sky as the clouds passed by them. Neither one of them said a word to one another. Haneru wasn't sure what to say to him at this point, and he didn't know any new anime that have been recently released in the past couple days.

"You doing okay?" Nikolo disrupted the peace between them.

"Y-Yeah. I'm fine."

"You sure?" Haneru looked at his friend when he asked again, "You did seem pretty different yesterday."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You were so upfront and questioning my mom yesterday." Nikolo pointed out, "I mean, you never asked her before because you wanted to keep the peace between you two. But this time, you were not only confronted her about what happened that night, but you completely went into an argument with her. You pissed her off so badly."

"I just couldn't stand it anymore." Haneru responded, "Oda had her pinned down by a secret she was keeping from you guys, and for some reason, she avoided contact with me as much as she could since that night. I couldn't understand why until I heard what Oda said. But since then, I now realize I can't stand idly by and let him walk over your's and my family. Even if it means damaging connections to others, I will stop Oda, if it's the last thing I do before I leave."

Nikolo looked amazed at what his friend was saying. He was so determined to break free of Oda's influence, and leave to Saitama with his mom, no strings attached. This was more than just an influence through anime. This was something more. "What made you change in one night?" he asked quietly, although audible enough for Haneru to hear.

The otaku boy didn't answer. He couldn't allow himself to get his best friend involved in something like the Metaverse. His change came from unlocking his Persona, and with it, the power to change Oda's heart. It was something he was glad to have. True, the other world was dangerous, and he almost got killed a couple times there, but that wasn't gonna stop him from achieving the goal he had set out.

"Nikolo, I know what I am saying and acting is weird." he admitted, getting to his feet, "But you gotta trust me. I will stop Oda, and break your family free of his influence."

"How?" Nikolo asked, rising up to meet him, "You got a plan to stop him?"

Haneru smirked in response as he answered, "I do. And it's something I can't get you involved in. Sorry." He turned and walked away, leaving Nikolo worried. His best friend wasn't planning to do anything illegal, is he?

* * *

When he returned home, Mia was waiting, preparing something in the kitchen. "You're gonna need something to eat before we go back in there." she told him, putting down a plate of rice and curry in front of him. Haneru beamed at the sight of the meal. No one could make curry like his mom could. He scarfed it down pretty quickly, almost choking at one point.

"It's not gonna harm you to take the meal slowly." Mia told him as he drank some water to clear his throat.

"Sorry…" he gasped, "I just like when you make curry. Where did you learn to make this again?"

"One of my dear friends during my years with the Shadow Break gave me the recipe." Mia explained, "She was trying to make it for someone she loved, and gave the recipe to me, as well."

"She created the recipe for this curry for someone she liked?" Haneru asked, finishing the curry, much to the shock of Mia.

"She was brilliant at so many things, but I never expected her to try and cook." his mom explained, giggling a bit at the thought, "She was so unexpected, it was surprising. Sadly, she died two years ago in a car accident."

"Seriously?!" Haneru asked in shock.

"Yeah…" she answered sadly, "She was such a sweet woman, too. She left behind a daughter, who was adopted by her sweetheart, who runs a café. I am planning to go by his place when we move to Saitama. It's a place called 'Leblanc'."

"Ooh, that sounds nice." Haneru stated, "I did get hooked to coffee thanks to you. Hope this guy's coffee is good, too."

"I'm sure it will be." Mia answered, getting a slightly serious look as she followed up, "But first, we have to change Oda's heart in order to go."

Haneru nodded in agreement, giving a confident grin. "I know we can change it. Let's do it, to it!" He picked up his plate, as well as his mom's finished plate, and went to clean them, while his mom went to get her sniper rifle. The time to act was now.

* * *

Moments later, the two found themselves in the back alley where they started yesterday. Both of them had their weapons ready as Haneru activated the Metaverse app. The world distorted around them, and moments later, they found themselves standing near Oda's Palace. Both of them were in their thievery attire, but their weapons suddenly vanished.

"Wait, where did my crossbow go?" Haneru asked, looking on his person.

"It's on you, but it's been dismissed for the moment." Mia answered, "Just call it to your hands, like you do with your melee weapon."

Haneru did as he was told, and sure enough, his dad's crossbow was summoned from blue flames into his hand. "Okay, now that's awesome!" he stated, grinning. He dismissed the weapon as he declared, "Alright! Let the mother & son skirmish to change Oda's heart begin!"

"Uh-uh-uh." Mia stopped him, "Remember, you should call me by my codename in this world."

"Oh, right. Sorry." Haneru apologized, "It's 'Fairy', right?"

"Pixie!" she corrected, flicking his forehead, causing him slight pain, "And you remember your codename, right?"

"Yeah. It's Kong." Haneru, a.k.a Kong, responded, "Still, why do we need codenames? It's not like Oda doesn't know who we are."

"Because we are phantom thieves." Mia, a.k.a Pixie answered, "You know anyone like that in those anime who don't use codenames?"

"You mean like 'Kaito Kid'? **(Author's note: 'Kaito' literally translates to 'Phantom Thief')** " Haneru recalled an anime he enjoyed, "I guess that makes sense. Right then. You take the lead, Pixie!" She nodded in response, sneaking away passed the front gate guards unnoticed as they retraced their steps back to where they were last.

After a while, they found themselves back on the hallway where they fought Oda's guards, and where Mia unlocked her Persona. As they reached that point, Kong asked, "So, about your Persona. Anything I should know about it?"

"As I told you before, my specialty was in long-ranged cover." Pixie explained, "My Persona, Cordelia, specializes in some healing spells, mixed with wind and bless-element spells."

"Bless? Is that like holy magic?"

"In a way, yes." Pixie answered, "There are a multitude of elements, all of which are different. On the physical side, there's Physical and Gun-type damage. On magic side, there's Fire, Ice, Wind, Electricity, Psychokinesis, Nuclear, Bless, Curse, and Almighty. There's also healing spells, support spells, and even spells that cause certain kinds of ailments, from dizziness to brainwashing and even despair."

"That's…a lot to take in." Kong stated, his mind overloading with all the types he had to memorize, "I know my Persona can use a physical skill and an electric spell. Can it learn anything else?"

"Yes. As you continue to defeat Shadows, your Persona grows and gets stronger, learning more powerful skills and spells."

"Cool! So it's like leveling up a character in a game." Kong compared, "You can sometimes gain new moves when reaching a certain level."

"Right. It takes time, but I'm sure you'll gain more power as time goes on." Pixie assured him, "For now, let's limit the amount of fighting we do, as we have no idea what lies ahead, and keep going further into the Palace."

The two progressed onward, passing by Shadows they chose not to fight against. Instead, they chose to continue onwards making their way to a door, which they discovered was locked. There were no handles, no keyholes, but what was strange was there was a shogi board on the door, with several pieces placed in some sort of formation.

"What is this? Shogi?" Kong asked, "Why is this here?"

"Remember, this is a cognitive world." Pixie reminded him, "Sometimes, the lock mechanism to a door isn't as easy as a keyhole and key. Sometimes, it becomes more complex…" She examines the shogi board, and noticed, "Look, there's an embedded hole right here where a shogi piece should be. Based on how the board is set up, we're looking at placing in the winning move in order to unlock the door."

"I get it. So if we find the right shogi piece that should be here, then we can move onward!" Kong realized.

"Exactly. I saw a pathway further back. Let's go there and investigate for the shogi piece."

The two retraced their steps, and went a different path. They had to take on a couple of Shadows, an Incubus and another Kelpie. Kong took out the Kelpie, while Pixie demonstrated her skills with a sniper rifle. She backed away as her son distracted the two enemies, took aim, and fired the shot. What Kong didn't know was that the weapon was even complete with a silencer, meaning the shot was quiet, but the damage was still the same as a real sniper rifle. She completely defeated the Incubus in one shot.

"Crap! That thing really does work like a real gun!" Kong gasped in amazement after they eliminated the two.

"You should try using your crossbow in the next fight." Pixie suggested, "Get a feel of the weapon, while I show you how I fight in close quarters."

"I thought you said you were more adapted to fighting from a distance?" he recalled.

"True, but that doesn't mean I can't hold my own when upfront with an enemy." she retorted, passing by him as she dismissed her gun.

They did get this chance quite soon. They found a room that looked like a study of some sort, and it had a pair of Shadows, which transformed into a Succubus and an Andras. Both went after the two, and Kong chose to fight the owl-man, while Pixie fought the alluring woman.

Kong took his mom's advice, and pulled out his crossbow. He avoided getting hit by a freezing attack from the Andras, and pulled the trigger. A bolt came flying out where there was none before, and it struck the owl man in the heart, defeating it.

"Dang…" he muttered, then realized his mom was fighting the Succubus. He looked to see her slash with her scythe, making it back off. She then used a bless spell to send shining arrows at the Succubus, making it scream in pain, defeating it.

She sighed in relief as Kong just realized something. "Wait a minute…" he told himself, "Uses a scythe in close quarters…a sniper rifle at long range… All is left is the red hood and the rose petals, and she is just like…"

"What're you spacing out for?" Pixie asked him, getting him back into the situation at hand, "You should be looking for the shogi piece."

"Oh, right. Sorry about that." he apologized, removing the comparison scenario in his mind. He went and started investigating the room, looking for the shogi piece. Turns out, the two of them found three shogi pieces. A knight, a lance and a rook piece. They also found a map of the place in the room, as well, and took that with them.

"So we have three pieces." Pixie pointed out, "Let's go back and see which one fits."

The two returned to the door once more. Kong had very little knowledge on the game of Shogi, so knowing which piece to put in was not something he could figure out. Pixie, on the other hand, knew the game well, and after a quick bit of deduction, figured out the lance piece was the right one to put in. Sure enough, when she placed it in the embedded part of the board, all the tiles of the board sank into the door, and it slid open for the two.

"Nice going, m-Pixie!" Kong nearly said 'mom' at that moment. She did notice that, but was glad he caught it before she did.

The two went in further, and found themselves in a large hall. Based on what they saw, it was suppose to be the large entrance hall of the palace. "We finally made it here." Pixie stated, pulling out the map, "If I had to guess, I'd say the most likely place the Treasure will be at is at the treasury above Oda's room."

"What will the treasure look like?" Kong asked.

"It will represent something of grandeur in this world, when it is really the source of his distorted desires in reality. It takes on a form here, but it will show what it really is in reality."

"What would be the source of his desires be?" Kong wondered.

"Who knows? Maybe his police badge?" Pixie assumed, "He was pretty smug as he was part of the force. He especially enjoyed going after delinquents and outcasts, like your father and all my friends."

"How did he treat you?" Kong asked.

"He knew my family was a highly educated one, and knew I was just like that. However, I think he liked me more for my looks. Needless to say, he treated me better than the rest of the Shadow Break. But the more I stuck with them, the more he put me a part of their group."

"But…that couldn't have been the reason he hated dad so much, right?" he noticed, "Last time, he said something about dad ruining his reputation. What did that mean?"

Pixie was about to say, when she noticed something and whispered, "Get down!" she and Kong hid as they noticed two soldiers coming down the stairs that led to the second floor.

"What is the situation on the intruders?" one of the soldiers asked.

"Lord Oda is beefing up security for the rest of this week. He is forbidding anyone from changing positions until further notice." the other soldier explained.

"Are the archer sentries at their positions?" the first one asked.

"Yeah. They have every able archer in position at all the windows." the other answered, "If they see someone that isn't one of us, they are to shoot without hesitation."

"Man, he sure is more paranoid since those intruders appeared before…" the first one stated as they walked off.

"Watch it. If Lord Oda hears you saying stuff like that, he will execute you on the spot." warned the second. After a while, they left the two Persona users alone.

"Did you hear that?!" Kong whispered as they came out of hiding.

"Seems like Oda is definitely increasing his security on the upper floors." Pixie answered, "We have to be more cautious from now on. No reckless run-throughs, okay?"

"Understood." he responded, making sure not to make a repeat like the last time they were here.

The two made their way to the second floor, going through the hallways until they reached the ones that had windows going down one side. "Just to be sure, do we know where the archers are watching from?" Kong asked, "Cause from any angle, they could see us."

"True, but look at the sunlight going through the windows." Pixie pointed out. Haneru looked at it, and noticed small silhouettes of the Shadows positioned on the rooftops in front of where the sun shone. "There's our hint. We can avoid being seen by the archers by not standing in the sunlight. Avoid those areas, and we should be fine."

"Hang on. I don't remember the sun being out when we were outside." Kong recalled, "It was still red and gray in the sky."

"The logic of the Metaverse is sometimes irrelevant." Pixie explained, "You'll understand as time goes on."

Setting facts and theories aside, the two made their way along the hallway, darting around the areas where the sun shone through the windows. It was pretty easy at first, but then they reached a large room where there were larger windows that make going the short way an impossibility. Fortunately, they used the furniture in the room that was blocking the sunlight, and even a couple of the soldiers Shadows that were patrolling the place, to avoid the sunlight.

Once they made it out of the room, the found themselves in a small room that led to another door with a shogi board on it. "Guess we got another puzzle to unlock the door, right?" Kong asked.

"We only have the knight and the rook piece." Pixie pointed out, raising the two in her hands, "Only one of them will give us the winning move." She examined the shogi board for a bit, then stated, "Right. It's the rook piece." She inserted the shogi piece into the embedded spot, and the door opened for them to continue.

"Just out of curiosity, but why are there shogi references all around this Palace?" Kong asked as they continued further in, avoiding Shadows and sneaking past windows, "The soldiers have shogi pieces for masks, some of the doors have boards, and there are decorations around here that even refer to the game, itself."

"It's because back in his young adult years, he was the winner of the shogi national tournament in Japan." Pixie explained, "After winning the tournament, he went and started to study to become a police officer. From what I knew about him, he used a lot of shogi references and tactics to be a very skilled part of the force."

"So he was more or less a tactician." Kong understood, "No wonder he is skilled enough to manipulate so many people in the apartments he owns."

"As he once said, analyzing your target and knowing their background is enough to know how to defeat them soundly." Pixie quoted, "Looks like he kept that motto, even as a landlord."

"It's sick he's using such brilliant tactics to get his own way like this." the young man growled, "It makes me sick that he doesn't even think of using that for better reasons than blackmailing and manipulation."

"I agree." the mother sighed, "He certainly changed. Especially after that one day…"

After a while, the two arrived at the stairs that led to the third floor. The security was slightly tighter, but they progressed forward, avoiding any unnecessary fights. They found themselves at the doors that led to the fourth floor, only to find them barred shut by a stronger mechanism than a simple shogi board.

"What do we do now?" Kong asked, "There's gotta be a way to unlock this."

"Look at these pillars barring the door shut." Pixie noticed, following a strong rope that was attached to the top, "It looks like a sort of pulley mechanic. They seem to go out of this room from either side, meaning two mechanisms locking the door."

"But the only ways we can exit this room is through the way we came, and those two large windows." Kong noticed, indicating the man-sized windows that led to the back of the palace, "Are there any guards out there?"

"I can't be too sure." Pixie answered, "The sun isn't shining through the back of the palace, but that doesn't mean we should find hostility out there."

"Well, only one way to find out." the ape-masked boy decided, pulling out his polaroid camera, much to his mom's surprise. He snuck to one side of the window, slowly brought out his camera, and snapped a picture. A photo came out of the camera, and after shaking it, he saw a picture of the walls surrounding the palace, and a pair of trees that were high enough to meet them, but no guards.

"All clear." he told his mom, giving the thumbs up, "I knew bringing this was a good idea!"

"Whatever works." Pixie chuckled as she stuck her head out the window, looking along the sides of the palace, "There are ledges we can get across. I bet the two lock mechanisms are at the end of each of them."

"Let's make this quick, and split up." Kong decided.

"No, we should stick as a team. If we run into hostility, we will need each other to back one another up."

"But doing this will be faster." Kong assured her, "Besides, you taught me a lot to make it this far. Shouldn't I at least learn to defend for myself at some point? Now's a good of time as any."

Pixie frowned at the idea. She didn't like it at all. The fact was that she worried for her son's safety. Still, he did seem determined to do this, so she sighed, "Fine, but if it becomes too much for you, I'll come running."

"Gotcha." he answered, giving a thumbs up. He took the left ledge path, while his mom took the right one.

Pixie raced quickly on the ledge, bringing out her sniper rifle just in case. There were still the archers that were positioned outside before. However, she did notice another large window for her to crawl through, and she peeked in. She was right before. Inside the room seemed to contain the other end of the rope on the pulley system, which was attached to a device with a wooden ship's wheel. A pair of soldiers were guarding the device.

"Looks like I found one of them." she understood, "Guess that means I just have to beat up those two soldiers in order to progress forward. Let's go."

She swung around into view, and fired two shots that blew off the masks of the soldiers, forcing them into their monster forms, being that of a Shadow Pixie, and a Mokoi. "What did you do that for, you little devil girl?!" the fairy Shadow demanded.

"Sorry, but I need to get to that mechanism." Pixie answered, putting away her sniper rifle and pulling out her scythe, "By the way, my name is Pixie, too. Wanna see who's the better one?"

The Pixie growled, but the Mokoi used the open opportunity as they talked to cast a spell to raise its' attack power. It lunged at the phantom thief, the boomerang in its' hand raised like a knife.

"Cordelia, blow him down." Pixie ordered, summoning her Persona, who cast a Garu spell to strike its' weakpoint, making it fall back in pain. Unfortunately, the Pixie Shadow cast a healing spell on the Mokoi, restoring some of it's health.

"No you don't!" Pixie shouted, leaping and delivering a slash that destroyed the Shadow. The Mokoi got back to its' feet, ready to attack her, but she turned and made a couple of slashes that eliminated the Mokoi entirely.

"That should do the trick." she stated, shouldering her scythe, "I hope Haneru is not in as much trouble as that…"

On the other side, Kong stumbled back, his Persona above him. He was dealing with the same enemies as his mom, only difference was that he found out the Mokoi had some resistance to electricity, and it was physically strong. Not only that, but the damage he did to it before was healed by the Pixie.

"Dammit!" he grumbled, getting to his feet again, "There's gotta be a better way to beat this thing!" He then took a pause, thinking on all the lessons his mom gave him. She told me that my Persona would get stronger if I fight more Shadows. We fought a few of them up till this point. Sasuke, if you are holding out on me, please help me out here!"

His Persona looked to the Pixie, who questioned the gaze. All of a sudden, it shot some sort of spell at her, and it wasn't an electric attack. She was paralyzed in shock for a moment, then the lights in her eyes went blank.

Kong was so confused as to what his Persona did, he didn't notice the Mokoi come in, and strike him to one side, sending into to the wall on one side of the room. He grimaced in pain, trying to get back to his feet again. The Mokoi was ready to strike, but was interfered when the Pixie came in and zapped it with an electric spell. Not only did that stop the ragdoll-like Shadow for a moment, but it also gave the Pixie an opportunity to turn around and use a healing spell on Kong as well.

"What the…" he questioned, feeling the strength come back to him. He rose to his feet, wondering why the Pixie was helping him. However, the Mokoi decided to take revenge, and slammed the traitorous Shadow to the ground, making her squeal in pain and vanish.

"Hey! That was a low blow!" Kong growled, leaping in with his quarterstaff, doing a front flip as he slammed the end of the staff on the Mokoi's head, dazing it enough for the Persona user to transform it into the dual blades form, and perform a technique he remembered a character in an anime using, called the Double Circular, and finished the job.

He panted from exhaustion, but soon recovered as he looked to his Persona. "What did you do, Sasuke?" he asked.

" **I simply used a skill that brainwashed the Shadow.** " Sasuke explained, " **Be sure to call me to use that move when it is best needed.** " he disappeared, reverting back to Kong's mask.

"A brainwashing skill? Awesome!" the otaku cheered, "I can't wait to use that in a situation like that."

He then turned his focus on the lock mechanic, and started to turn the wheel clockwise. At the same time, Pixie turned the wheel counter-clockwise. Both mechanisms used the pulley ropes to pull up the pillars that blocked the door, allowing access to the fourth floor.

The two rejoined at the door, with Pixie arriving to the scene first. "You okay?" she asked as her son arrived on the scene, "I hope you didn't have too much trouble."

"A bit, but I managed to gain a new skill, and brainwash one of the Shadows into healing me and distracting the other Shadow." Kong explained.

"Impressive. Brainwashing opponents is a very useful status affliction." Pixie told him, "Course, I prefer confusing opponents, but brainwashing is definitely a good technique to have on hand. Good for you."

Kong chuckled at the praise, then stated, "Let's head to the next floor! We should be close, right?"

"There is a tell-tale sign if we are close. Just you wait." With that, the two opened the door, and went up the stairs.

The signs she was indicating came into fruition as they opened the doors, and found themselves in a room that was really bizarre. The floor was filled with spikes, with the exception of glowing stone tablets that, upon closer inspection, were large shogi pieces. In fact, all of these 'pieces' took a formation in the room that represented a shogi board.

"What the hell is this?!" Kong questioned in shock.

"A sign that we're close." Pixie answered, "As we get closer to the place the Treasure is stored, the area around it becomes incredibly distorted. This proves we almost made it."

"And I see the door on the far end, over there!" Kong noticed, looking at the door on the far side of the room, "Although…it doesn't seem like there's a path to that area." He was right. As much as there were shogi pieces all around the room, there was no branching path that led to the door on the other side.

"Then we need to make a path to there. Let's find a way to do that." Pixie led her son along the shogi pieces towards another door on the far side. A she did so, she examined the positions of the pieces on the floor. For some reason, she felt like there was some sort of familiarity with the formation.

The two ascended to another level in the palace, but this time, after passing by patrolling enemies, they found themselves on the rafters above the room they were at before. Looking down, they could see a better picture of all the shogi pieces in place.

"Look! In the rafters!" Kong pointed out the thing they were looking for. There was a shogi piece hung by steel chains above it. "If we can drop that down, we can make a path!" he concluded.

"That piece…" Pixie noticed the top of it having red kanji writing, "It's a promoted knight. That's the piece that…" She frowned at the sight of it. "So he really can hold a grudge for twenty years. What a sad excuse of a man."

"What are you talking about?" Kong asked, confused, "Does this involve what you were trying to tell me before?"

"It's exactly that." Pixie sighed, "You see, during our time as the Shadow Break, Oda came close to getting the truth out of us. After a forged incident made by him, he arrested one of my friend, Daichi Suzuki. Even in high school, he was even taller than the teachers, and strong, too. However, he was gentle and caring, and constantly misunderstood based on his size. Anyways, Oda had him arrested to draw us out…"

* * *

 _(Flashback)_ A much younger Oda in a police uniform was standing in front of a cell that held a seventeen year-old Daichi, who was tall enough to reach the top of the bars. In front of a group of silhouetted high school figures were Mia and Noriaki. Mia looked somewhat the same, except she was definitely younger, and she held her hair in a long ponytail, and she wore a denim blue blazer and skirt for a school uniform.

Noriaki was a second-year student with brown hair and eyes of a lighter green hue than his future son, an average build, and wore a male school uniform of the same color as Mia.

"Give back Daichi to us, now!" one of the young male high school student behind the pair ordered.

"Fat chance, kids." Oda answered, "You kids have been a constant problem to me, always finding yourself in the middle of a crime scene or with people who somehow decide to confess their crimes. Tell me, where is the connection in you and these incidents?"

"Like we would tell a rotten adult who faked evidence to lock up our friend!" one of the girls retorted.

"Sometimes, one must go over the line in order to get the truth." Oda stated, grinning malicously, "Besides, you kids are unable to prove anything, nor do you have the reputation to be listened to."

"How can you be so cruel?!" Mia questioned him, "Why are so obsessed with this? You're suppose to be a role model, and instead you're abusing your power to get what you want. This isn't right at all!"

"Mia, my darling, this is just how the world works." Oda responded, the sass in his tone dying down just for her, "But you just don't understand. You're so smart, yet you chose to join this group of riffraff instead of seeing reason. I tried to convince you for so long, but you chose to ignore my warnings. This is the consequence of being in such a group."

Mia gritted her teeth, frustrated at the harsh words he was delivering to her dearest friends. However, it was Noriaki who stepped forward, glaring at Oda. "You disrespected my friends for far too long." he told him in a calm angry tone, "You could disrespect me with words, and you can try to hunt us down as many times as you want, but this time, you took it too far. You are no different than any criminal who does things illegal to get his way."

"Don't you compare me to scum like you!" Oda barked, "You think I'm lower than someone like you? Look who has the badge in this place! I am the law in this city, and your friend here just got caught breaking it. Soon, the rest of you will join him!"

"I don't plan to make the same mistake again." Noriaki stated, folding his arms, "So instead, let's settle it right now…with a game."

"A game?" Oda echoed.

"Yes. A game of shogi." he explained, "If I win, Daichi goes free, and you never mess with us again. If you win, you can take me, instead, and I can tell you what you want to know. Sound like a deal?"

While all his friends were startled at the gamble he was doing, Oda grinned sinisterly at this. "Oh, you have no idea what you just walked into, kid. You are in for a world of hurt by making a gamble like this. Let's do it!"

"H-Hold on!" Daichi called out, "Leader, you can't just go and gamble your life away. I'm not worth it!"

"All my friends are worth more than this scumbag. That's why I refuse to be bested by a pitiful man like this guy. I would be ashamed if I did!"

Mia looked at Noriaki with admiration. She was scared, true, but she was also acknowledging how smart he was.

Within moments, Oda set up a pair of fold-out chairs and a table with a shogi board on it. A couple of the officers on duty noticed this setup, and wandered in to watch what was happening.

"By the way, did you know that I was a National Shogi Tournament winner back when I was around your age?" he taunted him, "I still know how to outsmart a snot-nosed brat like you."

"He's right, Noriaki!" the girl who spoke up before called out, "He gained that title a long time ago. He might be beyond your skills!"

"Titles don't mean anything in this situation." the leader answered, "It's only your skills that tell you who you are." He placed a pawn piece up a step first, and declared, "Your move!" _(Flashback end)_

* * *

"…Your father was actually part of the shogi club at school." Pixie explained to Kong, "In fact, he was gonna represent the school in the district tournament. He was not only our leader, but our strategist when fighting Shadows, and a dang good one, too. Needless to say, the two were pretty closely matched. However, the tides turned in your fathers favor, and…" She looked to the large shogi piece hanging by the chain, remembering how it ended.

* * *

 _(Flashback)_ Noriaki placed his promoted knight piece on a certain spot, declaring, "Check!" Oda's eyes went wide, looking for a way around this. The way he positioned his pieces showed there was no way out of the position he was in. More of the police force was watching the shogi battle take place, including his chief of command.

"No…no, no, no!" he barked, looking frustrated at a way around this.

"Look at it however you want. You've lost." Noriaki told him.

"That's not true!" he retorted, standing up and throwing his chair behind him, "You had to have cheated! I could never lose to a brat like you!"

"There was no cheating involved. You saw it yourself. Your tactics were just too opaque and obvious. Your obsession had left your tactical mind blind to my movements, and that's why you lost."

Both Noriaki's friends and the police officers were either murmuring in amazement, or cheering at the amazing match. Oda looked around frustratedly, angered that he could lose so easily. This had to be a sick joke played on him. There was no way he could lose. He refused to.

"I demand a rematch!" he ordered Noriaki, thrusting a finger at him, "I can show you that this was just a fluke! A cheap-ass win you didn't deserve."

"Why can't you just accept you lost and let our friend go?" Mia asked, walking right next to Noriaki with an angry look, "Seriously, you have shown how shameful you can be by not accepting defeat, not just to us, but to your fellow comrades behind you." Oda looked behind him, seeing the disapproved looks at his reaction.

"Ok, and there's one more thing." the girl in the shadows spoke up again, stepping into the light, revealing her face to be a girl with gray eyes under bottom-rimmed glasses, with her raven hair in a bob cut. She raised a voice recorder as she stated, "I managed to gain audible evidence that proves you planted the fake evidence to turn our friend in. I was planning to give it to one of the other officers here, but I guess this is a better time as any."

Oda's mouth dropped at this. How could she gain actual evidence to what he did? There was no way anyone would be able to know what had happened! However, he heard a clearing of a throat, made by his chief of command. He turned to him, petrified at what he was about to lose. _(Flashback ends)_

* * *

"Oda lost everything." Pixie finished, "His talents as a shogi player were made fun of. He was banned from ever being a police officer again. Noriaki got Daichi out of prison, and we were free from his constant hounding. He was disgraced and ridiculed for such things for the longest of time. That's why he abandoned his former life, and became a landlord instead, choosing to rule over others with an iron fist and a tactical mind."

"So Oda still holds a grudge against my dad because of his own ego getting the better of him?" Kong asked, sick after hearing the story, "He's such a moron! He did that to himself, and he still blames dad?!"

"His life was ruined by your father. He must've held him accountable of driving him to losing all of it." Pixie stated, "But now, we have a really great chance to stop him, once and for all. Let's change his heart for good, and make him confess."

"After hearing that story, you betcha!" Kong answered with a mixture of fury and determination, "If anyone deserves to confess his crimes, it's that guy!"

After they investigated the area, they could tell that the mechanism that lowers the large shogi piece down was outside this room. Fortunately, there was something like a ventilation shaft that they could crawl through. Kong went through first, with Pixie behind him, who muttered something about how her wings were always a problem when it came to crawling through places like this.

The two finally found a floorboard to pop up out of the vent, and they rose up to find themselves in a long room, which led to two different rooms. The two went to the one behind them that should be above the room they were trying to get to. They snuck around the corner, and Pixie noticed someone in it. It was Oda's Shadow.

"I can see Oda's Shadow, and several Shadows. This must mean that this is the throne room." she told her son.

"Do you see the treasure in there with him?" Kong asked.

She did a quick examination before answering, "No. It's not in there. It has to be in the room beneath it. I don't even see a mechanism that should lower the shogi piece below."

"Which means that it must be in the other room." Kong summed up, "Let's go that way." The two quietly snuck away from where Oda's Shadow was at, and made a dash to the other room on the far side of the hallway. Pixie examined the room, and noticed, "I can see my cognition in there, and I can see the mechanism there as well."

"Are there any guards?" Kong asked.

"No. It's just her." she answered, "But I doubt she'll just let us go and use that mechanism. She'll no doubt want to fight us. You ready to go?"

"I'm ready as I'll ever be." he assured her, "Let's do it." Pixie understood, and the two ran into the room.

The geisha girl Mia looked up as Kong and Pixie raced up to her, ready to fight if need to. "So, you have made it this far." she told them, "My lord has instructed me not to allow you two to go no further, if you should ever arrive here. Course, he expected you to die long before reaching this place."

"Yeah, well we conquered this place and all tricks your 'lord' has tried to pull on us." Kong sassed, "Now all that's left is to flip that switch behind you, and take his Treasure!"

"Tell me something." Pixie started, "How does Oda view you as? Does he care about your intelligence at all? You are a brilliant person, after all."

"True, I am quite smart." the fake Mia answered, "But my lord is not interested in my intellect as much as my beauty and grace. A woman who deserves to be with no one else but him."

"He never cared for you as a person?!" Pixie questioned exasperatedly.

"If my intelligence helps him in any way, it's to care for him with my nursing skills." she answered simply, "Apart from that, my body and soul belong to him. And if he wants me to stop the two of you from ruining him, then I shall give up my life in order to protect him."

She suddenly went black, and her body transformed right before their eyes. She grew twice as large as them. Her geisha attire became black and red skull patterned, her face hidden by a mask with red slitted eyes, with a spiked headpiece on her long black hair. Her wooden clogs had spikes beneath them, and her hands held a pair of razor-sharp fans.

"YOU PEASANTS SHOULD KNOW BETTER THAN TO DISRESPECT MY LORD WITH YOUR FOOLISH ATTEMPTS!" she spoke in an eerie voice, "IF MY LORD WANTS YOU DEAD, THEN I WILL SLICE YOU TWO UP UNTIL YOU ARE NOTHING BUT RIBBONS!"

Pixie's eyes were shadowed for a moment, but her righteous fury was building up inside her. "He doesn't even care for me as a person, just like all those other people when I was younger." she growled, looking up at the face with hatred in her eyes, "This just gives me me more reason to kick his ass to the curb with no regrets!"

"Mom…" Kong muttered, never seeing his mom so angry in his life. However, this rage was something he could agree with. If Oda didn't care for the woman she was, then there was only one thing to do; take down this monster for good.

"FALL LIKE THE WORMS YOU ARE!" the monster Mia roared, making a dash at them and slashing her fans at the two, who avoided getting hit.

"Persona!" Pixie shouted, summoning Cordelia and making her unleash her bless-element attack at the cognition, causing damage to it.

"Take this!" Kong followed up her attack by dashing forward, pole-vaulting himself up to the cognition's mask with his weapon, and slamming her on the side of her head with it. She was sent collapsing to the ground as Kong backed off from it.

"Since you are good at fighting from afar, let me distract her while you take shots whenever you can." he told his mom.

"Are you sure you can do that?" she asked, worried for her son, "She is much stronger than any other Shadow here!"

"Trust me, I got this!" Kong assured her, grinning, "After all, I can't stand seeing this imposter mock the real you. Let's show her the power the two of us can unleash on her!"

The aura that her son was delivering was so similar to Noriaki, it almost left her in shock. However, she recovered as she nodded in understanding, and backed off as Mia's monstrous cognition rose up again.

"YOU WICKED LITTLE CHILD!" she barked, waving her fan, and sending fireballs shooting down at him. He charged in, dodging around the places they landed, and shouting, "Sasuke, let's go!" he summoned Sasuke to the battlefield, who unleashed a Cleave with his blade, slashing the cognition back.

It was about to strike again, when a shot to the face ended up making her falter. Pixie pulled out her sniper rifle, and was firing two more shots to follow the last one, making the monster Mia back off.

"HOW DARE YOU!" she roared, sending one of her fans flying, aiming at Pixie. However, Kong saw this, and timed his leap to get underneath it, turning his staff into blades as he tried to redirect the fan. It was made of a stronger material than it looked, not like a regular folding fan. However, he managed to push it hard enough to redirect the shot, and send it over his mom's head, avoiding a head-on attack on her.

"Close one!" he gasped in relief, seeing the result of what he did. He then noticed heat coming at him, and turned in midair in time to get blasted with a fireball, sending him tumbling to the ground, close to where Pixie was at.

"Kong!" she cried out as the fake Mia laughed at the damage. Her son got back up to his feet, wincing in pain, but still able to go. "Now's a good time as any to use this…" he grimaced, using one of the medicines he brought, and spraying it on his wounds, which thanks to the Metaverse, they healed faster than normal.

"YOU'RE SO STUBBORN. WHY DON'T YOU JUST DIE?" the monster Mia demanded, sending her other fan at the two.

"Pixie, let's use lightning and wind together!" he declared, calling out Sasuke again.

"Okay. Let's try it!" she replied, calling out Cordelia. The two used their electric and wind element attacks together, uniting as one as they collided with the flying fan. After a small struggle, they broke the fan in half, and the petrified cognition watched the attack come at her, screaming in pain when they came in contact. She fell to her side, damaged pretty badly.

"Kong, let's go all out!" Pixie shouted, readying her scythe.

"I'll follow your lead!" he answered, readying his staff.

The two leapt forward, turning into blurs as they peppered the cognition with an all-out attack. After a few seconds of doing this, they backed off. As Kong performed his backflip, Pixie landed neatly on her feet, kissing the palm of her hand, then stretched her arm out as she did a twirl, sending what looked like fairy dust around her, and striking a pose. "This madness has been managed!" she chanted, as the monstrous Mia screamed in pain as something spurted out of its' body.

The cognition vanished into nothingness as the two Persona users got together again. "I'm glad that thing is gone." Kong sighed in relief.

"I agree." Pixie responded, looking down with a frown, "I still can't believe it. Did Oda even consider who I was deep down? Or did he only see me for my looks and my wits?"

"Who cares? We're gonna change his heart anyway. We'll just ask him when that happens."

"Yeah, maybe…" she muttered, "Let's go activate the mechanism so we can go to where the Treasure is at."

The two went over to the mechanism, and saw an embedded part on the machine, which could fit a shogi piece. Knowing what to do, they placed the knight shogi piece they carried, and fitted it into the socket. It sank into the machine, and it flipped around, revealing the red lettering of a promoted knight piece. All of a sudden, the machine activated, slowly letting out the chain it was holding back. Down below, the large shogi pieces was descending down to the ground, landing on the spot that created the formation Noriaki made that defeated Oda long ago.

"You think that did it?" Kong asked is mom.

"Let's go see." she answered. The two left the room as quickly as they could, making their way back to the large room once more.

When they arrived, they found the piece that was in the rafters before in its' place, creating a path to the door where they hoped the treasure was at. "And that's check." Pixie echoed what her husband said in the past.

"Let's go see what's behind door #1." Kong stated, leading his mom as they raced over the large shogi pieces, and opening the door into the next room.

When they entered in, they found all sorts of scrolls in shelves around the walls, like the library before. There were also, what looked like, antique vases and treasures that were placed all over the area. In the center of it all, hanging in midair, was ever-shaping cloud of something, with a bright light in the center of it.

Kong whistled at the sight of all of this. "I can say one thing; Oda knows how to make a good treasure room." he stated, "But which one of these is 'the' Treasure?"

"It's that." Pixie answered, pointing to the small distorting cloud in the air.

"That thing?" her son asked, stepping up underneath it, "Uh…what is it suppose to be?"

"Right now, it doesn't have a materialized form." Pixie explained, "However, if Oda is consciously aware that their desires could be stolen, then the Treasure will materialize. Right now, we made an infiltration route to the Treasure. Now all that's left is to make Oda aware that we'll steal the source of his desires."

"So how're we gonna do that?" Kong asked, "We can't just tell him directly."

"Actually, in a roundabout way, we can." she answered, surprising her son, "Tell me, have you ever heard of thieves sending a calling card?"

"Yeah. I see it a lot, especially in that Kaito Kid anime." he answered, "Basically, he sends out a card to the police that states that at a certain point in time, he will steal a jewel of some sorts…" It took him a second afterwards before his eyes widened at the realization of where she was getting at. "Oh, I get it! We're gonna send out a calling card to Oda, telling him something like 'tomorrow, we will steal your desires and make you confess your crimes'. That'll make the Treasure materialize, right?"

"I guess anime is good for something." Pixie stated, "Yes. We'll send him a calling card saying something on that line, and that'll make him consciously aware. Once that happens, we swoop in, steal his Treasure, and the Palace collapses."

"Sweet!" Kong made a fist pump, "Oh, this is gonna be exciting!"

"Hold on. There's two other things I should warn you about." Kong calmed himself in order to hear these warnings. "First, Oda's Shadow will not let his Treasure go without a fight. He will try and stop us any way he can. It has happened to us in the past with every Palace, where we end up fighting the Palace ruler in order to take the Treasure. When that happens, we have to beat him, but not kill him."

"Right. If we kill the Shadow of a person, it causes a mental shutdown." Kong recalled, "I remember you telling me that."

"The second thing you should also be wary about is that when a calling card is sent, we have a day at most to go in and steal the Treasure before it disappears. Not only that, but we can only do this trick once. That's it. No do-overs."

"So it's all about risking it all on the one day." Kong understood, "Either we win, or we fail. And if we fail, it's game over for us, both in the Metaverse and in real life."

Pixie nodded, asking, "So, with that in mind, are you prepared to tackle this challenge."

"Are you kidding me? I was prepared the moment I knew what to do to change his heart. It's time we do it, to it!"

"Right. Let's head back home. We need to prepare ourselves to send out the calling card." she told him. With their minds set, they made their way out of the Palace, and back into reality once more.

* * *

When they got home, the duo were exhausted from their long excursion in the Metaverse. However, Haneru was totally excited to do this. He had never been this excited since the last Smash Bros. game was announced to come out on the new gaming system.

"I'll start something on the oven. Does pork buns sound good?" Mia asked him, "I got some frozen ones from the supermarket today."

"Sure. Let me just do something, first." he answered, racing into his room, and closing the door behind.

Mia paused for a second, then sighed as she muttered, "More than likely, he's getting ready to send out that calling card. I know he's excited, and I know time is short, but still…" She pulled out the pork buns from the freezer, thinking back at her times with Noriaki. She smiled, as she remembered a few times where even he was excited to change a person's heart, wanting to send out a calling card the moment they secured an infiltration route. "He definitely is like his father. And sometimes, that worries me."

Mia was right before. Right off the bat, Haneru dove onto his computer, pulled out a pen and a notecard, and started investigating online on anime calling cards. He searched from all genres, mainly those that involved phantom thieves. After investigating several of them, he started writing down some ideas on the notecard. His handwriting was pretty horrible, as he was more of a typer than a writer. He went through several ideas, then thought of some of his own, based on what he knew about Oda, and the backstories his mom explained to him.

Finally, after a while, Mia called out, "Dinner's ready." Haneru sighed, looking down at the final draft he came up with. He took it with him as he exited his room, joining his mom as she placed down a plate of pork buns, and a bowl of rice for each of them.

They said their grace, and began eating. After polishing his first pork bun, Haneru started, "So this is the best one I could think of so far. Take a look." He handed the notecard to Mia, who took it and read it. She looked carefully at the words, mainly because it took a while to read Haneru's handwriting. Finally, she said, "This is pretty good. I might add something else to this to give it a little more flare. Afterwards, I'll make sure to make it more proper, before we send it out."

"Can't we do it tonight?" Haneru asked, "I wanna get this over with so badly!"

"Hold on, Haneru. You are still exhausted from our ordeal in the Metaverse." Mia told him, "I am, as well. We can send this tomorrow evening, when we are well rested."

"Alright…" Haneru didn't want to admit it, but he was tired, too. Still, he wanted to make this happen. After everything that happened in the Metaverse, from the fighting he was able to do, to the anger at Oda for what he learned about him, he wanted to change his heart, now.

After a while of struggling to sleep, he sat back up, and looked at the clock. Almost midnight. _'Dang it all! I just gotta send out the calling card, now!'_ he told himself, _'I know it was so dangerous, and the risks are pretty high, but… I felt so natural in that world. I always wanted to be a hero. A person with powers to punish evildoers. I guess, being a phantom thief, I could say that I am more an anti-hero.'_ He smirked at the thought, _'That's not a bad thing, to me. Right now, all my dreams will come true in that world. And it starts by stealing Oda's heart.'_

He got out of bed and stood to his feet, stretching. "I can't just fall asleep like this. I gotta do something with all this access energy."

Deciding to get a drink, he stepped out of his room. Imagine his surprise when he saw that his mom was at the dinner table, with several newspapers, a pair of scissors, and glue. She stopped as she saw Haneru walk in. "Mom, what're you doing up this late?"

Mia paused for a moment, then smiled as she stated, "Turns out, your father's influence is not only in you. I guess…" she picked up a red notecard, with several word cutouts from the newspapers, "…The feeling of doing a calling card just enthused me, as well."

Haneru was surprised at what she said, and went over to see what she had written, or rather pasted on the notecard. It was relatively the same as what he said, with some minor changes, but ones that made it even more awesome than before. "This is…awesome!" he stated, handing back the calling card.

"Now the question is, how're we gonna send it?" she pondered, "We could slip it into his mailbox. We did that several times before."

"It's subtle, but I wouldn't mind making it a little bit bigger." Haneru stated, getting his mom's attention, "I do have an idea. One that might make our message known. He wants to see me as a trouble child, he's gonna get it." Mia wondered what he was gonna do.

* * *

At Oda's house, the elderly man in question was fast asleep on his bed, the lights to his two-story house were off. All the blinds were closed. The only sounds came from a ticking wall clock. For half the night, this was pretty much like this. However, it was gonna change pretty quickly…

CRASH! SHATTER!

The sounds of windows breaking woke Oda up so quickly, especially since the first window to break came from his room. Twice more, he heard glass breaking, along with the sound of something like a vase being shattered. "What the…!" he gasped, hearing another window break after that. He jumped out of bed, putting on his slippers, and grabbing his flashlight and firearm. He opened up his blinds to see the large hole in his window. Dogs were barking from the noise, as were lights turning on from nearby houses. He scanned the grounds down below with his flashlight, wondering who was responsible for this.

Little did he know that standing on one corner of his house, hiding his presence, was none other than Haneru, putting himself further back when the light nearly found him. He waited for Oda to be distracted by what came into his windows, then made a break for it, scuttling himself over the fence and into the alleyway behind it. "That'll give you a message." he whispered, before making a mad dash back home.

Back inside, Oda looked around the shattered glass, and saw the culprit responsible for shattering the glass. A rock. He picked it up, and examined it. He then saw something written on it in kanji. 'Go down.' "What the hell is this? Some sort of prank?" he asked, his eyes narrowed.

Bringing his two weapons of choice, he descended down the main floor, where he witnessed two more of his windows shattered. He searched around, finding two more rocks, but they only had the words, 'wrong one.' on both of them. He then went into the hallway, and found the last rock. This one had a red piece of paper wrapped around it. He walked to it and picked it up, unveiling the paper. It was written in newspaper cutouts.

"Sir Kusingo Oda, the demonic sinner of manipulation, fallen from the grace of justice. You have thought your crimes of blackmail and obsession of power were hidden within the shadows of the world. However, we, who shatter darkened hearts, have let you run amok for long enough. We will return tomorrow, and make you confess your crimes through your own lips. There is no escape from us, not even after twenty years. From, the Shadow Break."

He finished reading it twice, his mind in a great amount of shock. "The Shadow Break?! They've…returned?! But…" His expression went from shock to anger in a second as he growled, "So they're still trying to change people's hearts, and they're going to change mine?! How dare they…" He then recalled something. In the past, he was so determined to find out who the Shadow Break were, and the most likely candidates to be them ended up being…

Moments later, after walking past a group of citizens that had heard the windows breaking, he arrived at the apartment door of the Kurosawa family. He banged on the door harshly, shouting, "Open up! I demand it!" He shouted and banged on the door a few seconds more, until he saw the light turning on inside from the crack underneath the door. It opened up to reveal Mia.

"Mr. Oda, to what do I owe to this rude awakening?" she asked, as Haneru was meters behind her, already in his pajama bottoms.

"Where have you been all this time?!" he demanded, "Were you responsible to what happened at my house?!"

"What do you mean?" Mia asked, confused, "I was reading a book in my room until you arrived. Has something happened?"

He looked over Mia's shoulder, seeing Haneru's glare at him. "Was it you, boy?! Did you send this?!" He held out the calling card in order for him to see it.

"Hold on…is that a calling card?" Mia asked, taking the card from Oda's hand and reading it, "From the Shadow Break? They're still around?!"

"Don't play dumb! I know you, your husband and friends were the Shadow Break in the past!" Oda growled, "And now, you are even influencing your son just because of the conditions I made for you!"

"Mr. Oda, you have no proof that shows that my son or I sent this." Mia retorted with an angry tone, "Secondly, Noriaki told you that we were never involved with that group in the past, and you were suppose to stop hounding us about it. You made that promise, didn't you?"

Haneru was impressed at his mom's acting skills, making how she sounded so believable. Oda, on the other hand, growled in frustration, recalling those conditions in the past.

It was at this point where they found themselves surrounded by residents of the apartment. Oda looked about, then glared at the young man behind Mia. "If this is a sick joke, then I am not amused." he told him, "You damaged my house again, and now, you're gonna pay for it!"

Suddenly, it was as if the Kurosawa pair were able to sense the Shadow version of Oda replacing the one from reality. He glared at them with his yellow eyes, with a sinister glare as he stated, "You still don't seem to know your place, do you?! Well, I will make sure the two of you are soundly beaten!" Just as suddenly as he appeared, he vanished, bringing themselves back into reality.

Oda turned and walked through the crowd of homeowners in the apartment, while all of them were talking amongst ourselves, wondering what they had just witnessed. Nikolo and his parents were among the people.

Haneru crept up behind his mom and asked in a hush tone, "Do you think that worked?"

"If he remembers how effective we were in the past, then he is sure to be cautious." she answered quietly, "And thanks to your little stunt, you made him more pissed off, as well." Haneru rubbed the underside of his nose, grinning at his work.

"Hey, what's going on?" Kiya asked as she and Nikolo approached Mia at the door, "Why was Mr. Oda here? And what was with the shouting?"

"It seems like his house was damaged. By Shadow Break, no less, based on the calling card that was sent to him."

Kiya's eyes went wide in shock. Those who heard what Mia said conveyed to those who didn't listen. Most of the homeowners didn't know what she was talking about, whereas some who have lived in this town long enough, or recalled the news twenty years ago, were explaining who the Shadow Break group was.

"Shadow Break?! The supposed phantom thieves who targeted criminals and made them confess their crimes?!" Kiya questioned, "But they haven't been heard from for the past twenty years! You sure it's them?"

"He had a calling card in his hands. I read it." Mia answered.

As the two mother were talking, Nikolo looked around the adults to see his best friend still standing behind his mom. They made eye contact, and after a few seconds, Haneru smirked and gave a thumbs up. This was all Nikolo needed to know that he was the one who did this. The question was, why would he make such a proclamation? How could he make someone like Oda confess his crimes? He had heard about the group known as Shadow Break from his mom, who went to the same school as Haneru's mom. However, the stories she told were so unrealistic, he had a hard time believing it. It sounded like something out of an anime or video game. How could you actually steal a person's heart?

"It's late. We all should get some sleep." Mia told the group of people, "Sleep depravation is not good for any of you. Have a good night's rest." With that, she closed the door on all of them, leaving the mother and son alone.

"We should do the same." she added, "If we wanna take down that Palace, we have to be at our very best tomorrow. I'll get you some medicine to knock you out for the rest of the night, if I have to."

"I'm way too excited right now, so maybe that'll help." Haneru stated. Mia understood, and went to the bathroom to grab the meds. The otaku boy looked back at the front door, his eyes narrowing. _'Just you wait, Oda.'_ he mentally spoke, _'You may claim me as a daydreamer and a peasant, but it's that kind of attitude that's gonna end you. Cause when your nose is sticking in the air to avoid looking at us, that's when you should fear…'_ His fist curled tightly as he finished, _'…The people rising up from below you!'_


	6. The Lioness's Fate! The Ultimate Scoop!

**The final part of Guren Sakura's story is about to happen! Watch how the fate of the young lady changes dramatically, and how she will be lead to the present time when she can become part of the new wave of Phantom Thieves. Enjoy!**

* * *

Back in the apartment of Guren Sakura, the said girl had placed down the scissors and glue, taking her sticky latex gloves in the process. "There. No fingerprints, no problem." she stated, looking down at what she was working on. It was the calling card she had promised Daichi, written in cutout words from the newspapers she gathered all around town.

She placed on a fresh pair of latex gloves, and picked up the card. "Now, to set it up…" she told herself, smirking in a determined way. With this, she will change the heart of Itsuki, once and for all.

* * *

 _(Opening: Life will Change (Persona 5))_

 **(Music intro)**

 _(Starting in a backdrop of a city with gray and black buildings and a red sky, the camera pans through the place, while the white shadows of eleven individuals racing and leaping passed walls. Then the words 'I am thou. Thou art I' form in cryptic newspaper letter cutouts, followed by the title of the series)_

 **It's not a game. I'm not a robot AI challenging you.**

 _(Ren Amamiya steps out of Leblanc, heading to school, with Morgana in his bag. Guren Sakura joins his side as they both leave, and the screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Theives looks, with the names 'Joker' 'Mona' and 'Lioness' under their respective people.)_

 **I'm not a phantom. I'm in your face and I'm here to see it through.**

 _(Mia puts on her shoes as she heads to work, with Haneru racing up behind her, dislodging his slippers and putting on his shoes to go to school. He waves his mom goodbye as the both open the door to walk out. Screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Thieves looks, with the names 'Kong' and 'Pixie' under each of them.)_

 **Right before your eyes, watch us multiply**

 _(Ryuji, Ann, and a silhouetted figure appear in three parts of the screen, then, with a flip of their respective confidant tarot cards, changing into their respective Phantom Thieves attire, with 'Skull' and 'Panther' listed to their respective owners.)_

 **Come to claim our rights - it's time**

 _(Three more silhouettes appear of the three remaining members, which shift to silhouettes of them in their Phantom Thieves outfits like the others.)_

 **As our power grows, trying to stop us shows…**

 _(Inside the interrogation room, Ren looks to Sae Nijima, who glares seriously at him, while she has pictures of victims he and the Phantom Thieves targeted on the table. Ren sees a sparkling blue butterfly pass his eyes, and he closes his eyes)_

 **(You) Might as well go try'n stop time**

(In the velvet room, the camera pans through the bars of the cell, past the twin prison wardens to Igor in his seat. He looks up at the protagonist with his usual grin, and the Metaverse Navigation app button appears behind him as he fades away, and the app activates.)

 **(Song break)**

 _(From an overhead view of the central street of Tokyo, the area starts to shift as it changes to the Metaverse point of view. Tarot cards of every confidant fall down to the ground in the middle of the big street, where the Phantom Thieves stand, ready to go.)_

 **So you know that we're out there, swatting lies in the making.**

 _(Joker leads off summoning Arsene to his side, readying his dagger as he lunges at a masked Shadow, pulling it off and slashing at it. Lioness leaps in, stopping a pair of unknown Shadows with her rapier and stabbing them through the chest with a pair of thrusts.)_

 **Can't move fast without breaking. Can't hold on or life won't change.**

 _(Kong leap onto a head of a Shadow, whacking him in the back with his quarterstaff, knocking him to the ground before turning his staff into swords and making a falling stab onto him. Pixie uses Magaru with a twirl of her scythe, blowing away a bunch of Shadows. All four Persona users draw their guns out, pointing at four Shadows in the center of their circle, and fire at them.)_

 **And our voices ring out, yeah. Took the mask off to feel free.**

 _(Mona in van mode drives the known thieves, with Pixie at the wheel, as they journey through Mementos. They encounter a bunch of the main Shadow versions of human enemies, each transforming into large silhouettes of their respective monster forms, their eyes glowing.)_

 **Fought it out in the debris, now we know that life will change.**

 _(Mona transforms to normal as they all leap up into the air, Joker, Lioness and Kong taking off their masks to reveal their Personas, ready to attack.)_

 **(Music ending)**

 _(The scene shifts to several of their supporters doing their routines, from Sojiro running the Leblanc, to Mishima walking while looking at the Phan-Site on his phone, Akechi being interviewed on television, Takemi writing something at her clinic, to Kawakami teaching her class, Mifune flipping her tarot cards, then flipping over a calling card made by the Phantom Thieves. The scene shifts to a red and black, spiraling backdrop as the card along with all confidant cards fall into an abyss, replaced with the title of the series again.)_

* * *

The next day... Guren had never felt so excited in all her life. After managing to finish making that calling card late last night, she had it sent to a postbox that very same Friday night, making sure no one saw her do it. She new that if she sent it then, then by the morning, it will be mailed to the news station for Itsuki to read.

The question, however, was when she would know he would've read it. After digging up some info, she found a good way to do it; there was a tour around the news station happening Saturday morning, and that would be the best opportunity. Course, she had to be careful, as Itsuki knew what she looked like, and that he was stalking her the previous day. "Guess I need something to disguise myself when going there…" she told herself.

She looked at the digital clock next to her bed, noticing the time. 4:13 AM. She had literally spent the entire night awake. Sighing at the fact she couldn't get back to sleep for such a minimum amount of time, she muttered, "Better asked Sojiro to make my cup of coffee strong…"

The next morning, Guren groggily wandered to Leblanc, giving the excuse that she was having trouble sleeping last night, wanting a strong cup of coffee. Fortunately, her uncle knew just how to make a good, strong cup of joe, and the minute she sipped it, she was wide awake.

"Where're you heading off to this morning?" Sojiro asked her as she finished her cup.

"The usual; Trying to find ways to save your shop." she answered, grabbing her shoulder bag and walking out the door, "See you later, uncle!"

"H-Hey, hold on!" he tried calling out to her, but the door closed before he could get a reply. He sighed as he muttered, "I know she's trying her hardest, but she really doesn't need to push so hard. I hope she won't push herself over the edge."

Inside the Sakura house, Futaba listened to Sojiro's word through the hidden microphone she had in the café. She looked really worried as she muttered, "She wouldn't do anything reckless, would she? Who am I kidding…she would."

She picked up her smartphone, wondering if she should text her cousin. However, she stopped and placed the phone down. After all the things she tried telling her before through text, she feared that if she did it again, she would cause Guren to disappear like she did a couple nights ago. She didn't believe she was to blame for it, but she didn't want to take any chances. All she can do is wait and see.

* * *

It was around eleven in the morning when Itsuki Kato was casually making his way to the news station for work. After failing to catch Guren the other day and taking away the money she had earned from her piano performance, he was in a slightly foul mood. As much as he liked the money he earned from threatening his victims, he takes more pleasure in watching them all suffer and seeing their lives ruined by him. Nothing made him feel more empowered than taking away other people's freedom like that.

 _'Damn that bratty girl. Still, not like she'll make the 5 million in time,'_ he thought, looking at the bright side of things on his side as he ventured close to the station.

At this point, Guren was with a touring group of people, now wearing a disguise featuring a baseball cap with the words 'Kanamin Kitchen', a pink and yellow dress, wide-rimmed fake glasses, and some red sneakers. As the tour guide was talking, she kept a watchful eye around the area. As time went on, she noticed at one of the news sets, she saw a group of reporters standing together, muttering something with worried expressions. One of them held a familiar envelope she had sent last night. _'There it is.'_ she told herself, _'Now just show it to that asshole, and everything is set.'_

As if calling him onto the scene, Itsuki came in through the squeaky doors nearby, who was looking about, wondering where his fellow co-workers were. The said group stopped and looked to him, as were a few of the other workers, with expressions of confusion and questionable looks from them. He himself was confused with the expressions they were giving him, and as he was approaching them, some of the workers were even distancing themselves from him.

 _'What the hell is wrong with these people?'_ he wondered. He approached his fellow reporters, who scattered, with the exception of the man who held the letter. Itsuki didn't know his name, nor cared enough to ask. He didn't know the names of most people working with him. "What's with everyone around here?" he asked him, narrowing his eyes at his co-workers, "They act like I have something hideous on my face."

"Well…" the weatherman started hesitantly, worried about his reaction.

"Spit it out, already!" he ordered him, "What's with everyone here?!" This was audible enough to draw in the tourist's attention.

"Well... This came in." The guy handed Itsuki an envelop. The reporter snatched it from his hands and saw that there was no name on the back; just the address. He took out the letter within it, which was the calling card.

"Sir Kato Itsuki, a great sinner of lies and deceit. You have made fools of many by making tall tales of people's minor misdeeds, and using your power and greed to ruin them. To make you atone for your sins, we're gonna steal your desires today and force you to confess your crimes from your own mouth. Be prepared. From, the Phantom Thieves."

"Is this some kind of joke?" the weatherman asked, "Everyone is quite concerned about this. If that letter is true, then all those shops and stores you reported, the people you reported..."

"Of course it's some joke. I would never make false reports on anything," Itsuki lied, putting on a fake smile, "I'm sure someone sent this because someone wanted revenge from me divulging the truth about their shop."

"You always do have a knack of finding out the truth about those shops, especially the people who owns them."

"See? They're just mad because they can't handle the truth." Itsuki stated, patting his co-worker's shoulder.

"Although…" one of the news reporters approached him hesitantly, "There have been a lot of hate mail sent to this station for you. Not just from the business owners, but also the shoppers who go to them. They blame you for making falsified statements against their businesses, without any illegitimate reason."

"Are you insinuating that this claim might be true?!" Itsuki questioned angrily, "You have any proof to back up that statement?!"

"N-No! I was just thinking out-loud, is all…" the reporter answered fearfully.

"Then keep those thoughts to yourself!" he growled, causing him to run away in a panic.

Guren watched his expression, then felt something as everything went dark around her, with the exception of herself and, to her surprise, Itsuki's Shadow, replacing the man in reality. "Force me to confess? I like to see them try!" he barked. Just as suddenly as he appeared, he disappeared as reality came back into play.

Itsuki crumbled up the calling card, and tossed it into the nearby garbage can as hard as he could. He was furious, and that's what drew a smile on Guren's face. _'Bet that kind of reaction will definitely draw out the Treasure.'_ she told herself, _'Guess it's time for phase 2.'_

She approached the tour guide, who was equally as distracted by Itsuki's anger as everyone else, and asked, "Excuse me, I need to get going. I have an emergency to take care of."

"O-Okay. Just go back the way you came, please." she told her.

"Thank you." Guren thanked her, and left the group, going out the door. Itsuki heard the door open and closed, barely seeing Guren leave, but not recognizing her from her attire.

As soon as Guren was outside the station, she took a sidestreet, pulling out her smartphone and activating the Metaverse app. The area distorted around her, and she found herself nearby the entrance of the mansion, which replaced the news station. The area did have a different vibe to it, like they were alerted to an intruder.

"Looks like the calling card you sent worked out." a familiar voice made Guren jump in shock, pulling out her rapier in defense and turning to see Daichi standing right behind her. "Easy, easy…" he backed away slightly, raising his hands in response to the threatening blade pointing at his stomach.

"For someone so big, you certainly appear from nowhere." she scoffed, making Daichi laugh.

He then calmed himself as he looked serious and said, "Thanks to the warning, the place is on high alert. Fortunately, that'll mean the Treasure has also appeared. You ready to steal it?"

"If I wasn't, would I have not sent that calling card?" she asked in a 'shouldn't that be obvious' kind of tone. With the decision set, the two leapt out and started the infiltration route to the Treasure.

As they made their way past all the guards that were even more aware of their surroundings than ever, Guren asked, "So the Treasure should have materialized thanks to the calling card, right?"

"That's right," Daichi answered, "Better prepare yourself, though. The Treasure can sometimes be big and heavy. Once we get it out of the Palace, though, it will transform into the true source of Itsuki's distorted desires, or rather an exact duplicate of it. Still, whatever the Treasure is in the Metaverse, it's more of an overdramatized version of the real thing."

Guren scoffed, thinking he was joking. "Please. How big and over-the-top can this Treasure be?"

Like in so many ways where a character would question the exaggeration of an object, they would eat their own words, and Guren did just that. When they entered the place where the Treasure was at, they discovered what the Treasure was, and her mouth dropped. Turns out, it took the appearance of a large, decorated golden staff appeared, which was taller than Daichi, and as thick as one of his thighs. To say Guren was shocked at the size of the object was an understatement.

"Here we go. Itsuki's Treasure," Daichi said, approaching the said object, "All we gotta do now is either attempt to sneak it out or wait here for the party to arrive."

"I vote for sneaking it out," Guren answered, shaking herself of the shock of the Treasure, "We do that, at least we'll be able to exit out of the castle faster when we beat Itsuki."

The big guy looked at Guren in confusion when she said that. "Don't you mean 'if'?" he asked.

"You said it yourself, that Itsuki will try and stop us. I'm not going to let the mission end here." Her fists curled tightly as she couldn't even imagine being beaten by him, "I refuse to let people suffer any longer because of him. We will fight and we will win."

A smile formed on Daichi's face when she said that, "Yeah. I suppose that's true. Now come on. Help me with this thing." Both picked up opposite ends of the staff and made their way out of the room with it.

For some reason, as they were exiting, they noticed that there were no guards around to stop them. Not in the hallways, nor anywhere they were patrolling before. Most people would be relieved at the sight of this. But not Guren or Daichi. In fact, the male of the two spoke up what both of them were thinking.

"This is not right. This feels like an ambush, for sure."

"I agree. I haven't even seen Itsuki here, either." Guren pointed out, "But with this heavy piece of gold we're carrying, I can't pull out my weapons."

"Fortunately, your Persona helps with voice command. Be prepared to call it out." Daichi noted.

 _'You don't have to tell me that. I know.'_ she mentally retorted, keeping an eye out for any signs of an ambush.

It was when they entered the ballroom that they stopped suddenly, finding Itsuki's Shadow blocking their path…along with a bunch of his Shadow guards. "Going somewhere?" he sneered, a look of warning and despise as they had tried to take his Treasure away.

"Itsuki. We were wondering if you were going to show," Daichi said, while Guren glared harshly back at him.

"You're taking something of mine. How can I just let you pass?" he questioned, waving a hand up in dramatic flare, "Of course, I can just report a robbery. But alas, here in the Metaverse, the cognitive world, reports don't mean much. I'll dispose of you myself."

"You seem to be one of the most open people to acknowledge that you are in the Metaverse." the mountain-sized man muttered.

"Why...?" Guren spoke up, getting the guys' attention. "Why make false reports on all those people? They had done nothing wrong, and you made their lives miserable. What do you get out of all of that?"

She placed her end of the large golden staff onto the ground, while Daichi placed his end down, joining Guren's side as she continued, "It's something that's been on my mind for quite a while, actually. Not just you, but for all adults! Every day of my life, I was always framed for what they had done! Accused of crimes they committed! Center of made-up stories just so they can get away with things! Those guys were all scums! But you? You have a job as a reporter. How could you still ruin lives the way you do?!"

The said reporter didn't bat an eye at her anger-induced words, but instead retorted, "You're asking that now? Well, I suppose I should at the very least indulge you before I kill you. It's simply because... I can!" The two Persona users were a bit shocked at the answer.

"You think I'm just going to spend the rest of my life telling boring news to the world?" he asked, raising his arms forward, "People don't want to hear the boring, happy life; they want to hear something more... dramatic. Something horrible happening to others, so they can feel good about themselves. In this world, there's always the ugly, and only the ugly! I'm sure you know that better than anyone, Guren Sakura! You said it yourself, how you were always accused for crimes you never committed! There's no such thing as nice in the real world."

As he said all those things, deep down, Guren knew he was right. No one ever knew her for who she really was; only as the girl who was constantly falsely accused of crimes others committed. And even though she just waved off her arrests, in truth, they still hurt her. She especially recalled the first few times she was taken to jail. She remembered crying and screaming that she hadn't done any wrong, that the real culprit was getting away. And yet, despite that, simply because she was at the scene, no one believed her. Even her own friend and family had slight doubts that time, despite what they said about believing in her. She couldn't find anyway to disagree with what Itsuki's Shadow said, but someone did…

"If that's true, then you must be stuck on one side of the coin," Daichi said, bringing the attention to him as he opened his slit eyes, revealing their dark orange color, "It's true, this world has its ugly side. But that doesn't mean it's the only thing it has! I should know."

He placed his hands on his hips as he stated, "Take me, for example. I have been big and tall like this for all my life. I terrify people my age because of that. I was constantly thought as someone who would squash a person the moment they disagree with me. In truth, I wanted to be friends with people. I tried to act like the nice guy, but I was too soft-spoken, and people ended up either too terrified of me, or used me for their own needs. Thanks to some friends of mine in high school, I ended up learning to not allow people to constantly walk over me, and be the person I was truly meant to be."

Guren had no idea that Daichi had that kind of story, and felt kinda guilty for misjudging the guy, herself. Although, this was mainly due to him being an adult.

Daichi pointed a finger at Itsuki as he stated, "You may say such things about the world, but I know you better than you tell yourself, especially after what happened in the other day in Shibuya! I should know. I saw you that time! The you in the other world!" He flashed back to when he was standing above the crowd of people, some of which were terrified at his height, while he watched the real world Itsuki watching Guren, who was playing on her keyboard. Despite his personality, there was a slight smile forming on Itsuki's face.

"If this world really is nothing but ugly as you claimed it to be, then why would people ever listen to Guren's... to Lioness's performance?!" Daichi demanded angrily.

Guren tiled her head in confusion at the nickname. _'Lioness?'_

"I saw yesterday. Many people gathered for her." the mountain of a man continued, "It wasn't because she's a problem child, nor was it because they wanted to spat at her to make themselves look good! No. They spared money for her and listened to her talent. Many may know her as the problem child, but there are still some who see her for who she truly is! A girl with a wonderful talent!"

Guren was shocked to hear Daichi say such things about her. She never thought she'd hear an adult actually commenting her love for music before. Sure, she had heard customers at Cafe Leblanc complimenting her from time to time, but for some reason, to hear it from Daichi... it was like hearing it from Makoto or Sojiro. And those words... brought back light in her eyes.

"It's as he said," she spoke, her resolve returning, "So what if this world has its ugly side? That doesn't mean it's okay for you to ruin people's lives for your own satisfaction! For your own greed!"

"Big talk!" Itsuki scoffed, "You say it like I'm the only bad guy in this world, but what of the criminals who made you take their fall?!"

"Isn't it obvious?" Guren asked, getting a questionable look from her enemy, "What I'll do to you... I'll do to them! But it's not for payback for what they did to me. It's so NO ONE will have to go through what I had!"

Daichi closed his eyes and had a small smile form on his face when he heard her resolve. "You heard her. One way or another, we will take this Treasure, and make you confess your crimes!"

Itsuki glared at them at the declaration. "That's what you think. I'll kill you before you take a step out of this room!" He held out his glowing hand at the two. Both Daichi and Guren had their guard up, expecting some kind of blast to come. Instead, the staff started to glow and flew right into his hands. The moment it did, the most unexpected thing happened. At least, to Guren.

Itsuki's body started to move violently, bending in ways that shouldn't be bent. Next thing they knew, black ooze came out of his body and dragged his men into him, who were panicking at being forcefully melded in with him. As they all got absorbed into him, he got bigger, his back started to spout out demonic wings, horns grew out of his head, his clothes began to fade and his skin was turning scaly blue. Blue and green and skeletal tails were also coming out of his behind. It was as if he became a blue-skinned version of Satan.

"I'll crush you and report your deaths as suicide!" Itsuki screeched, slamming his staff on the floor.

"Get ready, Lioness!" Daichi exclaimed, his fists tightening as he went into a fighter's stance. When he received no response, he looked and saw Guren standing there, her eyes dilated and her mouth gaping. "Lioness?"

Before he knew it, he was somehow grabbed by the collar and pulled to her face. "Hey! You didn't say anything about how big the boss gets!" she told him in a frightened matter, "Do you really think the two of us and Alanna are enough to beat him?! Cause I don't see your fists doing much to it!"

"Calm down! I'm gonna use more than just my fist." he assured, having his partner release her grip on him. "You're not the only one to use your Persona!" Daichi concentrated and flames surrounded his eyes, disappearing to reveal a wooden tiki mask with multi-colored feathers sticking above. Blue flames also consumed his body, replacing his clothes with new garments, which made him more of a shaman than anything, with a black shirt, thick black gloves, a dark brown skirt underneath black and beige-patterned baggy pants. He wore something around his collar that looked like it was made of dried tall grass, and the same stuff was attached to the bottom of his pants legs, hiding his bare feet.

"Since he sees me as an enemy, I guess there's nothing else to do but to go all out!" he stated, thrusting a palm forward, "I, Daichi, also known as Totem, shall be your downfall, you scoundrel!"

"Really?! Acting like that at a time like this?!" Guren questioned his drama, but was intrigued by his new look.

Itsuki let out a ferocious roar, his staff glowing. "Freeze, fools!" he shouted, slamming his staff on the floor. The ground below the two thieves began to glow and both quickly jumped away from their spots, avoiding the ice that suddenly sprouted from where they stood.

"Ice again?" Guren questioned, "And this is definitely a lot more ice than those other Shadows."

"He's deadlier than any other enemy you have faced yet." Daichi, a.k.a Totem, pointed out as the two landed on the ground once more, "We best get some defense! Defend us, Golem!" His tiki mask faded in flames as his Persona, a humanoid rock monster with red eyes and a ruby-like chest piece, appeared right in front of the two. It's core gem glowed as it slammed its' fists together, and it shined the gem's energy upon the two. Guren saw herself and her partner glow purple, and she felt as if her body was encased in a thin, yet sturdy armor.

Before she could continue to question the strange boost, she noticed Itsuki's staff glowing again, this time calling out a large glacier and shot it at them, specifically her. She couldn't dodge the attack in time, and quickly brought up her rapier to protect herself, thinking of multiple scenarios that could happen because of the attack coming her way, and all of which involve her getting damaged. The attack struck her, and she got sent back a bit, but for some reason, the damage she took was less effective than she thought. "How..?" she wondered, looking at herself.

"Lioness! Are you okay?!" Totem called, his Persona reverting back into his mask, "Good think my Persona provided you with better endurance, yeah?"

"Y-Yeah…" she replied, realizing what that glow was before. His Persona amped up her defenses against attack. She still wondered why Daichi was calling her 'Lioness', but that was a question for later. Right now, it was payback time.

"Now, to repay the favor. Alanna!" Her own mask bursted into flames, summoning out her knight. Alanna rushed at Itsuki with her large sword and swung. Itsuki held up his staff to defend himself, but the force behind the swing was so strong, it pushed him back and dealt some damage at him.

"Damn you! How dare you attack me?! I'll report you for this!" Itsuki complained, leering sinisterly at them.

"You're complaining for that?! You must really be a huge whiner, after all!" Guren claimed, as Alanna returned to her mask form.

"Why you…!" He prepared another ice spell at Guren, only to be interrupted by Totem's Golem getting in his face, and throwing a punch at him. "Don't forget us!" the male Persona user shouted, throwing a punch of his own at Itsuki's chest, causing him to gag a bit.

The big Shadow swung his staff at the duo, forcing them off and sending more icicles at them. Golem got in front of its' user and shielded him from the attack. Once the shower was over, it reverted back into Totem's mask.

"Should we do what we did earlier in this room?" Guren asked her partner.

"Sounds like a plan," he answered. At the reply, Guren backflipped away from the fight. When she was at a good enough distance away, she brought her sniper rifle up in front of her and aimed at Itsuki's head.

While the Shadow was distracted by Totem, she fired shot after shot at the enemy, hoping it would do some damage as it had done to the lesser Shadows. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to be doing much damage to him. _'Guns are not doing much!'_ she thought. When she heard only clicking sound, she clicked her tongue at her luck and placed her gun back on her back, taking out her rapier. _'I need to pull off a good enough hit to make him vulnerable.'_ she told herself, _'Better aim for the head. And I know just how to do it!'_

She knelt down in a runner position, and dashed forward towards the fight, ready to deliver a powerful thrust with her weapon. "Senpai! I need a boost!" she called out to Daichi. He knew she was referring to him and turned around, hands cupped in front of him. One foot on the cupped hands, and the big guy tossed Guren up. When the girl got to Itsuki's face, with a loud war cry, she delivered a powerful jab right in between the eyes.

Despite the amount of force she put behind it, the hit wasn't enough to take Itsuki down, as he head-butted her away. Totem raced to her as she fell, and caught her in his hands before quickly dropping her back on her feet again. "Well, that wasn't enough…" she muttered, shaking her head from the attack she endured.

"But it definitely ruffled his feathers." Totem pointed out, seeing the villain massage the spot where Guren struck.

"You damn bitch! That actually hurt!" Itsuki shouted, "Time for a heal!" His staff glowed and shot out green light in the air. The light exploded and rained down green specks of light at his side. When the light landed on him, the injuries he had disappeared.

"He healed himself?!" Guren gasped, "You mean all we did was for nothing?!"

"That staff is more troublesome than I thought," Daichi pointed out, "We have to get it out of his hands first! Use your knight Persona!"

"Right! Alanna!" The dual-persona user called on her knight again, whom tried to knock Itsuki's staff out of his hand with a swipe of her sword. However, the Shadow seemed to have predicted the attack and avoided it. The staff glowed a familiar blue light after that, causing the floor beneath the pair of Persona users glow as well. Aware with that the attack was, they both moved away from their spots. However, this time, a gust of icy air shot up to slow down their movements enough to get struck with the ice that sprouted afterwards. They got shot upwards, feeling the freezing pain of the attack that hit them.

"Looks like that light didn't just recovered his injuries," Totem said, recovering from the attack a lot better than Guren.

"No kidding..." the dual-Persona user agreed, rising back to her feet as Alanna returned to her master. "Just how the hell are we suppose to beat him?!"

Itsuki laughed at the question. "That's a laugh! From the start, you never could defeat me! I am the truth everyone wants to hear! The top of the reporter food chain! I eat lowly scumbags such as yourselves! People like you should be bowing to the floor in my presence! And when I am done erasing any hope of that dumb café ever having any customers, I will target all the people closest to you will suffer an even worse life than you, you escaped convict!"

Hearing that claim... that one last claim... something in Guren snapped. Her eyes were shadowed as she muttered, in a raging voice that was soft to start, "What…did you just say?"

Either he didn't hear the question or didn't care enough to answer, Itsuki just continued to laugh at how powerful he had become compared to the pair of thieves beneath him. "Hahahaha! Grovel in despair! Cry on your knees! Freeze where you stand!" He fired a barrage of icicles at Guren.

"Lioness!" Totem readied himself to use his Persona to protect her. However, before he could make the attempt, he felt something. A pulsing, intensified rage, coming from Guren. If there was anything he knew about the rage of a Persona user, it's that it can defy all standards, and the strength of a person can go beyond the levels they were at before, but at a cost. The same was said for what was about to happen.

Before the icicles came even close to her, she raised her rapier, and with speeds that were almost unrecognizable, she stabbed each and every icicle, transforming them into something that might as well been shaved ice. The sight of the attack stunned Itsuki.

"Do you really think... I'm going to let you roam free after hearing that?" she growled, "I'm gonna kill you!" She charged at Itsuki, with a feral look in her eyes.

"Lioness wait! Don't be so reckless!" Totem warned her, but his words went in deaf ears, for Guren showed no sign of stopping or even slowing down.

"Fool!" Itsuki shouted, as he fired another barrage of ice her way. Guren avoided and parried as much as she could, but her blind assault left her dealt with scars all over her body as she charged forward. When she was close enough, she summoned Alanna, who swung her big sword at Itsuki. The big guy was caught off guard and was struck hard, getting knocked back. Guren got on her back and jumped over the Persona, sending a rapid barrage of rapier thrusts right at his face, pushing him back even further.

Itsuki painfully got up from the hits, his staff glowing. "Damn you...!" He healed himself and raised his power once more. "DIE!" He had more ice sprout out of the ground, in an attempt to both kill Guren and give a wide birth from the thieves. Guren quickly backflipped away from the ice, all the way to the wall. She clicked her tongue and was about to rush in again, when Totem grabbed her by the arm.

"Hold it, Lioness!" he shouted, surprised to struggle against restraining the girl.

"Let me go! That bastard's gonna get it!" she retorted, her anger too intense to think straight.

Totem ignored her cries as he tossed what seemed like a bomb at Itsuki. Once it made contact with one of the ice spikes, the room was filled with smoke, giving the muscular man time to drag Guren behind a pillar, hand clamped on her mouth.

"Where did you go?! Running away, are we?!" Itsuki questioned, "Ha! You knew fighting me would be in vain, as you should've known from the start!"

While the girl struggled to get out of his grip, Totem harshly whispered in her ear, "Listen to me! If you let your anger consume you, you'll end up killing someone, whether it be him or yourself! And if you kill his Shadow, you'll end up killing the one in reality!" In response to his warnings, Guren backhanded him in the nose, causing him to release his grip on her to hold it in pain.

"I don't care," he heard. "I could care less if I die or accidentally kill him. That bastard took things too far. And I will make sure of it... that he pays dearly for it!" Looking up at the female Persona user, Totem's eyes widened a bit when he saw her eyes turn yellow. There was only one time when that happened. Could it mean...?

" **You really want him to pay?** " came a voice in Guren's head, different from Alanna's.

"With his life," she answered out loud.

A scoff was heard. " **Then it seems I didn't waste my energy earlier for nothing. All right. I'll give you my name. Now make that disgusting human pay!** "

"Then fight with me, you stupid lion!" With that one shout, she came out of her and Totem's hiding spot, charging in at Itsuki.

"Still haven't given up, girl?!" he said, shooting more ice at her, "You should've run when you had the chance!"

"Show your fury... LEO!" The mane part of her mask bursted in blue flames and shot towards the attack. Fire and ice collided and caused a steamy explosion to occur. With the white smoke blocking his vision, Itsuki kept his guard up and looked around the room in front of him. "Where are you...?" he whispered. It was then he saw it; a shadow in the smoke. "There!" He jabbed his staff down towards it.

As the smoke cleared, his eyes widened as he saw that the shadow wasn't Guren, nor that he had killed what the shadow was. Holding his staff down was her lion Persona, clamping it in its mouth and pinning it down. "What?! You damn feline! Release my staff at once! Do you have any idea how precious this is?!" he demanded.

"Do we," came a voice above him. Looking up, he saw Guren in the air. She tossed her rapier at him and, with perfect accuracy, struck him in the shoulder, causing him to release his precious weapon.

"Now you can't heal yourself, or even protect yourself!" Guren roared, descending down to where he stuck her rapier at, grabbing the handle, "Not even from this!" With a war cry, she dragged the blade of her rapier upwards and out of the shoulder of the satanic reporter, causing a scar and him to scream in pain. She pushed herself off of Itsuki as he collapsed to one side, squirming in pain from the damage he was dealt with.

Totem came to where Guren landed and ordered, "Now's our chance for an All-Out Attack! Follow my lead!" The girl didn't need to ask to know what that meant, as both she and her mentor gave everything they had, the former retrieving her weapon as they did so and continuously striking the defenseless Itsuki.

As the guy went down, weakened, the dual-Persona user decided to give the finishing touch. "End this... now!" Calling upon both Alanna and Leo, the two did a combo attack of their own. Leo let out a ferocious roar and rushed at Itsuki, claws and fangs ready, and struck hard, especially at his left side, which was now missing an arm. Alanna followed it up with another swing of her big sword, knocking him out of the room from the windows and to the balcony.

Black and red ooze shot into the air as Itsuki's massive body faded away as he fell. When he crashed landed, Itsuki returned to his normal self. In replace of all his cockiness and overconfidence was fear, as he looked up at Guren, scared out of his mind as she approached him with her Persona and rapier.

"W-W-Wait! Please wait! I-I surrender! Just please! Let me live!" he pleaded, raising his hands in defense.

"Begging for your life now? Wow, that is rich." she scoffed, the fury in her eyes not dying down, "My uncle and I didn't want you to ruin our lives, and you brushed our pleads away like they were empty words! I bet tons of other business owners were like that, too, and you acted just the same with them! Do you have any idea how unforgiving that is?!"

"I-It's not entirely my fault!" Itsuki defended, "Everyone at work always ask for something new and exciting! I-I was forced to do this!"

"'Forced'?" The word made Guren's almost kill him right then and there, but she continued, "Your real self sure didn't look forced when you claim to make a false report on my uncle's shop. Nor did you look troubled when you told the shadow of that woman that you'll make a fake report about her killing her own son! Stop making excuses and pay for your crimes!"

Leo opened his mouth, ready to unleash an evil-looking attack. Itsuki looked terrified as he knew the end was near.

"Lioness, stop!" Totem shouted from behind, "If you kill him now, you would be no better than him! You can't let your anger and hatred get the better of you. Remember, who and what you are fighting for. The people who care for you wouldn't want you to kill someone like him. If you want to truly make him pay, then make him confess his crimes, and have him spend the rest of his days imprisoned in his guilt!"

Guren's rage in her eyes suddenly lessened at these words. Her sensei's words were able to reach her, and make her see that there was that alternate option. One that left her without a guilty conscious, and give the man she hated a great amount of suffering at the same time.

Just as Leo was about to fire, Guren raised her rapier in front of her dark Persona, silently ordering him not to strike. The beastly Persona looked over at its master. "What are you doing? Don't you want him to pay?" he asked.

"I do. With his life," she answered, shaking her head, "That's why death is too good for him." To the frightened Shadow, she continued, "You will spend the rest of your life, looking back on all the crimes you've committed. The lives you ruined. Forever feeling the same agony and despair your victims went through. You will atone for your sins, and confess your crimes to the police. Give them the real scoop of the century."

It was silent for a while. Eventually Itsuki's Shadow bowed his head in defeat. Tears poured from his face as he muttered, "I guess…it would be the ultimate story. A former reporter who rose to grandeur by stomping upon the lives of the innocent. It would give the people they want, wouldn't it?"

"Yes. Feel the same pain of crashing to the ground, just like what you did to so many great businesses." she told him, sheathing her rapier, "And leave Leblanc out of it!"

"Very well…" Itsuki's Shadow muttered, his body glowing, "I will go and make my real self confess to everything. You have…my word…" With that, he vanished in a sparkling of lights.

Guren sighed in relief, the energy she used for her anger vanishing, feeling the recoil of exhaustion affect her a bit. She collapsed to her knees as Alanna and Leo looked to one another, then back at Guren. While the knight felt relieved, Leo's eyes narrowed as the two vanished into flames, returning to her mask.

Totem walked up to Guren, patting her as gently as he could on her shoulder. "You did good," he commended her for her restraining her self from killing the Shadow outright.

"I like to think that," she said, looking up at him, "If you hadn't called out like you did, I would've killed the guy. Sorry for losing control like that."

"You do have a gift, but I can tell it is a double-edge sword." Totem stated, rising her up to her feet, "One part of you is filled with light, while the other is filled with malice. Reminds me of someone I knew back in the day…but that's a story for another time. In any case, you gotta make sure that malicious side doesn't take you over when the time comes to make someone confess their crimes, okay?"

"I'll…I'll try." she answered, realizing how dangerous her heart really was.

"Quell the rage of the lion, but bring out the strength and pride of one. It's what I see in you, hence why I call you 'Lioness'. A good name for your life as a phantom thief." Totem stated with a smile.

"Oh, so that was a codename, huh?" she asked, giving him a slightly amused look, "And her I thought it was a cheesy nickname you came up with." Her sensei chuckled at this statement.

Suddenly, the two felt the ground shake, and saw the ballroom they were in suddenly start to break apart and collapse. "Damn it! We have to get out of here!" At Totem's words, the two retrieved the staff again and rushed out of the mansion.

The two made a mad dash through the hallways, seeing the parts of the mansion behind them break apart and collapse. They knew that if they stopped at least for one second, they would die. There was no way they could allow that to happen.

Finally, they reached the main entrance, and were making their way to the front door, with Guren in the lead. However, just as they were about to reach it, the ceiling above them gave way, and was about to crush the young lady.

"Lioness!" Her sensei pushed her out of the way of the falling rubble. As Lioness fell on the floor right next to the door, she looked back and saw, to her shock, her sensei straining as he and his Persona holding up the rubble, which could collapse on all of them.

"Sensei!" She quickly got back on her feet and rushed to him. "I'll get you out of here!"

"What are you saying? You have to run now!" he shouted, "My Persona and I can't even move without it collapsing on top of you!"

"There's no way I can just leave you!" The dual-Persona user tried to reach them, only for parts of what Totem held to break and fall in front of her, impeding her path to him.

"No, Lioness! This time, you have to go on your own!" The teen froze when she heard that. "You can't get me out of here in time. Not with the Palace collapsing like this. You need to go before the both of us are goners!"

Guren couldn't believe that she would lose someone like him. Her mind, for some reason, went into a flashback, going to the time where her parent had stood there to protect her from the man who murdered them, saving her at the cost of their lives. She refused to lose someone like that.

"Don't say such stupid thing!" she shouted, straining to push the debris aside to reach Totem, "Why would I leave you behind to save my own skin?! Screw it, I am saving you, whether you like it or-."

"Listen to me!" She flinched at the tone her sensei used, "This Palace is going to disappear at any moment! When it disappears, anyone and anything in it will vanish with it! I know it is hard, but you have to leave before you vanish!"

"But you'll disappear, too! I don't want to lose you! You still have to teach me things about the Metaverse! You have a life in that other world, don't you?! Why are you sacrificing yourself to save someone like me?!"

Totem looked down, thinking on what she said, then answered, "It's because…I no longer have a life in that other world." The words stunned the young Persona user. "I lost that life a long time ago. You wonder why I spent almost all of my time in the Metaverse? It's because I was running away from people who want to kill me in reality, and also…to find all of my dear friends who went missing in the Metaverse. They gave me a reason to live when I needed it so badly. They saved me on more than one occasion, even freeing me from being falsely accused at great risk. I'm sure, from what I heard, that you know that feeling."

Guren was shocked that he underwent the same experience that she had gone through constantly. Just like how he had been saved from imprisonment by his friends, she had been saved by Makoto and Sae on numerous occasions. The two were not so different.

"Apart from me, only one other person from the group of friends I had is still alive, and doing her best to live a normal life, free from returning to the Metaverse. The rest are either dead or missing. But as for you…" Totem smiled sweetly at her, "…you don't have to worry. I have nothing left to teach you about this world and being a Persona user. As for reality, you have a life. You still have a family who loves you. You still have that friend who I saw protect you from Itsuki. If you were to suddenly disappear, how do you think they would feel?"

She tried not to, but Guren was shedding tears as her teacher was telling her, convincing her, to leave him to die. "I thought I had one regret, and that was not finding my friends, or telling them goodbye, when I had the chance. But now, I have one other thing I regret…and that's seeing you grow up to be a better person than me." Hearing that made Guren cry even more, now realizing why he would give up his life to save her. It was because he saw himself in her, and saw a life worth saving.

"Now go, Guren. While you still have time." Totem moaned, his arms starting to strain on him as he was losing the strength to hold the debris much longer, "Don't leave the people close to you behind for someone as outdated as me! Live your life to the fullest, with no regrets! And while your at it, make friends who will stand by you till the end of time!"

Mustering every ounce of courage and will in her, Guren got up and ran, away from her teacher. She could hear Totem roaring as he used every ounce of energy, with his Persona also straining to hold the now crumbling debris above them. She had just reached the front gates when she heard the debris crash, and she turned in time to see dust fuming out the front door. There was no sign nor sound of Totem or his Persona being there anymore.

With tears falling from her eyes, she felt the area distorting around her, but she had her eyes closed as her mind flashed back to only a few days ago, when she first met Daichi, how hostile she was towards him for a while, but as he taught her so many lessons on being a Persona user, she warmed up to him, despite being an adult. The memories of his smile coming to her mind, the battles they fought, right up to their final battle with Itsuki. Despite the few days they knew one another, and despite the short period of time they had been together, she could feel something more than just a master and student relationship between them. It was as if he became family to her. To her, Daichi became…

"DADDY!" she screamed, collapsing to her knees in the alleyway she reappeared in reality. She bawled her eyes out, with barely any person noticing her or caring enough to approach her.

* * *

Days passed since then. Guren was still in a depressed state as she thought back on what happened. There was no news on Itsuki, nor was there any signs of Daichi still being alive. The Treasure she took from the Palace turned out to be a notebook. In it were several stories and school gossip involving things happening in Itsuki's high school years. From what she guessed, Guren assumed that being a journalist in high school went to Itsuki's head, and that led him on the path that made him become the man he was today.

"Sakura..."

Not only that, but when she returned to the real world, Guren discovered that the Palace's location no longer appeared on the Meataverse app, and that it was no longer available. That meant she couldn't return there at all, even to search for Daichi again. The thought of helplessness left her feeling more miserable.

"Sakura..."

And to make things more difficult, she had no idea if the change of heart actually happened or not. And it didn't help that she'd been watching the news since that day and kept waiting for Itsuki's report to show! In fact, there was no sign of the man being on the news at all. She did learn that he was apparently not feeling well, and would not reappear on the news for a while, but that didn't mean anything if she didn't…

"GUREN SAKURA!" shouted a loud voice with a loud slam.

"Y-Y-Yaes?!" Guren quickly shot up, slightly frightened at the tone the teacher used. Yes, school had started a few days ago. And due to her loss of her master, mixed with worry about if they did change his heart, it was just as hard for her to focus on school at the moment.

"Glad to see you back with us. Now answer the question," the teacher, Mr. Ushimaru, told her. Some of the students in the classroom chuckled or muttered insults at her absentminded demeanor.

"The answer is..." Guren trailed off, mentally cursing herself for not even knowing what the question was. A small cough was heard and Guren looked down slightly to see the question written in Makoto's notebook. "A soul is composed of appetite, spirit and... logic," she answered.

The teacher grunted and nodded. "Correct. So you knew that, huh? Plato's teacher, Socrates, said that evil is born from ignorance. People who've been babied, taught that evil is due to individuality, can only become society's scum. Sakura, you may sit."

"Yes, sir." With that, she sat down. As she did, there were whispers in the classroom.

"Bet she looked at Niijima's answer." "There's no way she could've known that was the right answer." "The cheater."

While she should be bothered by the insults and accusations, Guren wasn't. This was practically normal for her, due to her bad reputation. Even though she was sent to jail on false charges, there were many students who didn't believe her to be innocent. And it didn't help that the students in her school are more focused on rumors than they were on reality. Though, now she was more ignorant on these comments than before, due to having more grieving thoughts to think about at the moment.

Makoto, who sat in front of her, clenched her hands together, both irritated at the student's insults at her dear friend, and worry. The fact was that she knew her friend was in despair for some reason.

It was around the day after Itsuki's Palace disappeared when Makoto noticed the change in Guren's personality. "Is something wrong?" she asked her, worried for her friend, "You look really sad for some reason."

"It's…nothing for you to worry about." she answered, trying to think of an excuse, then coming up with, "I'm just…I just discovered some things that made me miss my parents."

"Oh…" Makoto understood, looking sadly at her, "Well, I'm sure you will get over it. Remember, if you need someone to talk about it, talk to me. Sound good?"

"Thanks, but I don't need you to be dumped with my despair on top of you. It'll pass…eventually."

Since that day, though, Guren's attitude didn't change that much. Despite what her best friend said, Makoto could feel that this was more than just losing her parents. Could this have something to do with that reporter she was dealing with before?

"All right, quiet down. We can make due without those insults in my classroom." Mr. Ushimaru told the class.

Soon, it was lunch time. While everyone was having lunch in their classroom or out in the yard, Guren and Makoto were having their lunch on the roof. "Unbelievable! I can't stand those guys would ever think that!" Makoto exclaimed. "When are they ever going to realize that you're not a cheat?!"

"It can't be helped Makoto." the convicted girl sighed, "You know the students here are more focused on rumors than they are with everything else."

"But still…" she turned to her friend with a smile, "They don't know you the way I do. It's really sad. If I become Student Council President, the first thing I'll do is do something about those rumors. You were only sent to jail because you were framed. Every now and then, I walk down those halls, and I often hear some of them adding on the crazy rumors about you. Like how you were on drugs or how you'll sneak in a weapon at school or sneak a fellow criminal in."

"Well, maybe those rumors will do them good." Makoto looked at her in confusion when she said that, "When they realize how ridiculous the rumor was getting, it will simmer down and they'll see that I'm not a crook. Course…with my luck, that'll happen when hell freezes over."

"As sad it is to say, I have to agree with you." the red-eyed student seconded, "Why don't you join the music club? Maybe once they hear you play, they'll change their opinions about you."

"Do you really think they'll let me join if I ask?" Guren asked back, practically reminding Makoto of her status in school. "Besides…I'm not in the mood to join a club, right now. Too many things on my mind."

The second-born Niijima's eyes soften when she said that. " You still grieving about your parents?"

Guren almost forgot she made that lie to her, and she answered, "Yeah, pretty much. I just wished I could've done something to save him-I mean them."

Makoto fortunately didn't bother with her autocorrecting her statement, and replied, "Well, you were still so young. There was nothing you could do."

"I know…" Makoto didn't know that her best and only friend was agreeing to her sentence not about her parents, but about Daichi. Guren ran through so many scenarios since that day to see if she was even able to save Daichi, but saw no way around it. Daichi was right. She was pretty useless to save him.

"So…what about that reporter?" Makoto decided to change the subject, "Have you ran into him, lately?"

"Lately, surprisingly, no. I mean, I haven't seen him around, but I don't know if he's still watching me."

"And how's your financials? Think you and your uncle made enough?"

"I honestly don't know. My uncle won't tell me." Guren sighed, "But today's suppose to be the day. And last I checked, Itsuki will be making that report later tonight."

"Maybe I can give you some of my savings or ask my sis if we can take you guys in until you can find a job," Makoto said hopefully.

"As much as I appreciate the offer, Makoto, like I said before. This is my problem, not your's. Besides, I always get out of these sort of mess," Guren assured.

"This doesn't look like one of those mess you can get out of so easily though." her friend pointed out. Guren had to half-heartedly agree. It wasn't easy at all, and she knew that she did everything she could in that other world, thanks to Daichi. Right now, the only thing she could do was wait. Considering she didn't get a response, Makoto guessed she dove back into her thoughts again. It was silent between them, and the two spent the rest of lunch time eating their bentos.

* * *

After school was over, both Guren and Makoto went their separate ways home. As she made her way to the station, Guren couldn't help but be worried if she and Daichi really got the job done.

 _'All that fighting better not be for nothing,'_ she thought, _'Sensei's sacrifice cannot be in vain! But what can I do while I wait for the change of heart, if it ever happened?'_

She chose to just go meandering around the streets in Shibuya. There wasn't really anything else for her to do. She couldn't sing, with all the pain and worry in her heart. She did use some of her money to buy herself an ice cream bar to munch on.

She didn't want to waste any more money, so instead, she went to a spot she had been to a few times before; on the rooftop of a tall building near Station Square. It was one of the few buildings that people could easily get in, and the only one of them that barely anyone ever had any need to go to the rooftop. It was windy, but Guren was able to sit in a place where the wind wouldn't be too much of a problem. All she could do was sit there and watch thousands upon thousands of citizens walking about, going about their daily lives without a care in the world. It was sad that there were so many people who really didn't care for the pain of people like Guren.

Still, all she could really think about what the loss of Daichi, who she really started to feel like he was a fatherly figure to her. The more she thought about him, the more she scolded herself for not trusting him so much at the start. I mean, there was no indication that he would've betrayed her then, and yet she just didn't open her heart to trust him. It was something she regret doing.

As the sun started to set on the scene, Guren decided to go back to the station, where she took a train ride back to Yongen Jaya. Turning a corner to her apartment building, the girl froze when she saw Itsuki standing right in front of her uncle's coffee shop, mic in hand, and his crew in front of him. Her bag slipped from her fingers as she saw the reporter standing there with a smile on his face and she fell to her knees.

 _'What the hell...? All of that…even what Daichi did for me… for nothing?!'_ she thought, as tears formed in her eyes. _'I should've…'_

"That's right, fellas. After taking time off and getting the rest I need, I am back and ready to report yet another wolf in sheep's clothes," came Itsuki's voice, which seemed much less buoyant and confident. What came next... was something unexpected. "That wolf... is me." Guren looked up when she heard that.

"I had…made too many people lose their jobs and businesses." his eyes started to water as he thought of all the places he put out of business, "They all treated their customers with upmost respect. They did nothing wrong to lose what they worked so hard to achieve, and I... I framed them under false statements and accusations…just so I could feel good about myself. I manipulated, and blackmailed, treating them like I was a noble among peasants. In truth, I'm even worse than a peasant, or any bum without a job."

He sank to his knees, while his crew looked astonished at what he was saying and doing, especially since they were still rolling. "I…I don't deserve to be a reporter. I have no right, especially after what I had done." he sobbed, "If there are any cops watching this, I'm in Yongen-Jaya, in front of a coffee shop called Cafe Leblanc. I want you to come and arrest me. And to the people whose lives I ruined... I am so sorry. I can not do anything to give you back the jobs you once owned. Almost all of the shops I had visited had such great service, and the kindest owners to run then, and I used them as stepping stones for my own fame. I should never have framed you as I did. Please forgive me!"

He bawled in tears as he groveled in front of the camera, his face hidden from the world, ashamed of the person he was. While his crew were in absolute shock at what they were witnessing, no one was as shocked as Guren was. She was utterly speechless at what was happening before her. _'We... we did it...'_ she thought. _'We changed his heart... We won!'_

While her smile was there for a second, it disappeared again as she mentally finished, _'…But at what cost?'_ She looked down, a mixture of gratefulness and woe mixing within her heart. No matter how much she tried, she could think of no way of celebrating. The gains were not as high as the losses she had dealt with.

* * *

Later that evening, she had locked herself in her apartment, laying in bed as she looked up at the ceiling. Her niece and uncle were wanting to celebrate for the close shave they had with losing the coffee shop, and insisted she come on over to join them for the celebration. She made the excuse she was worn out from worry about what was happening, and decided to go to sleep early. While Futaba worried, since she too noticed her cousin in grief. However, Sojiro, who also noticed it, stated that she shouldn't bother. He understood very well when to back off when he needed to, allowing Guren some time to get back to normal again.

 _'I feel bad for letting others worry about me, but I can't really tell them why.'_ she told herself, _'I was the only one who cared about Daichi. He sacrificed himself to save me in the Metaverse. I…I just can't allow others to know about that place. I'd rather not introduce people to a world of pain like that. I'm not even sure if I wanna go back there again. What would happen if I lose myself there? That would just leave Futaba and Sojiro grieving in the same way I'm grieving for Daichi.'_

She covered her eyes with an arm, unsure of the situation. All she could do was grieve and question where to go from here. Was there a place to go from here? Fore that, she had no clue. If only Daichi were around here, he would find a way to cheer her up and help her progress onward. By herself, she had no clue. Even her methods of her time in jail were hopeless in a situation like this.

Just then, she heard a knock on her door, and she looked towards it. Who would be coming around her apartment at this time of night? Was it Sojiro? Futaba? Maybe Makoto? She couldn't think of anyone else other than the three, but just to be safe, she decided to check and see who was at the door first-hand.

The high schooler walked to the door and opened it. On the other side was somewhat of a surprise to her. It was the woman she lent money to back in Big Bang Burger.

"Oh good, you are here!" she said. She suddenly grabbed Guren's hands and gratefully told her, "I want to thank you for helping me out the other day!"

"H-Huh?" the teenager could only reply with.

"You probably don't remember me, but I'm the woman you lent money to back in Big Bang Burger a few days back." she explained, "The amount you gave me was enough to help me buy medicine for my son! Well, at first it was to pay off a debt, but the person I owe called it off. You may know him as Itsuki Kato."

The recall of the man she delivered justice to still hung over her as she replied, "Yeah. I know him. Imagine my surprise when I saw him confessing his crimes in front of my uncle's shop."

The woman smiled graciously as she stated, "I should probably introduce myself better. My name is Yuuka. I own a small flower shop in Yongen-Jaya," she introduced.

"And my name is Guren. But how did you know I lived here? Moreover, how did you know who I was?"

"It was thanks to that friend of yours." Yuuka explained, "I think her name was 'Nijima'? Well, she said she saw you give me money before, and I wanted you to thank you. She told me where your apartment was, so here I am."

"Oh…" Guren figured the girl she spoke of was Makoto, who she should 'thank' later for divulging where she lived to this woman, "Well, in any case, I didn't need you to go out of your way to thank me or anything."

"But I HAD to! Rumors were going around about my shop while I was in Itsuki's debt. It wasn't easy selling flowers because of him. It was because of you that I was able to get medicine for my sick son." She bowed to her in thanks for going out of her way to give her money.

"Really, it's nothing." the high-schooler waved off her courtesy towards her. It was so rare to be thanked by a random civilian like this. She was so use to being accused instead, and sent to jail because of it. Now, she had no idea what to do.

"I wish to repay you somehow," Yuuka continued, "Maybe a job at my shop? I know how hard it is to find work for high school students nowadays. You don't mind that, would you?"

Guren was in shock at the job opportunity thrusted into her lap. Now, of all times, she was given a chance to make some money without getting it from her uncle. While she wasn't in the best of moods, she did think this was chance she couldn't let go, no matter what she was feeling. "Sure, I would love to!" she answered, "My uncle will be so happy to hear that. Thank you."

"You're very welcome." Yuuka answered, "Also, there's another reason why I came here." She dug into her pocket, and pulled out a letter, handing it to her, "For some reason, I found this letter addressed to you in my mailbox a few days ago. I can't understand why that would be there, but now that I found out where you lived, I can finally give it you you."

Guren took the letter, looking at it in confusion. Sure enough, it had the name 'Guren Sakura' written on it, but the address was clearly not her apartment.

"My shop's called Ka-san Shop and you can start whenever you want." Yuuka continued to explain, "Oh! And I do hope you're okay around bees. They do come around every once in a while for the pollen."

"So long as I don't bother them, they don't bother me, right? I'm okay with them."

"That's great news!" Yuuka grabbed her hands and shook them hard, "Well, I hope to see you again." With that, she left Guren alone as she closed the door.

She sat back at her bed again, looking at the letter given to her. Who in the world would be writing to her? and how could they make such a big mistake as to send it to the wrong address? None of this made sense, but she guessed that the letter might explain everything. She grabbed the letter opener, and tore the top of the envelope up, taking out the letter and reading it.

 _"To Guren Sakura, the Lioness."_

 _"If you are reading this, that means I didn't get back to reality in time to stop it from being delivered, meaning I am dead or something like that. In that case, I am sorry I left you alone since that time."_

 _"Let me just tell you this; For the longest time, I had been alone in the Metaverse, searching for friends of mine, who were part of the previous group of Phantom Thieves known as Shadow Break. Five of them were somewhere in the Metaverse, unable to come back to reality for the longest of time. One of my friends in reality died due to greedy adults who wanted the to use the Metaverse for their own gain. My last friend is still alive, and knowing how fate seems to go, you will meet her at some point. She was the previous owner of the rifle you now wield. If you meet her, tell her…I'm sorry for not finding her beloved."_

 _"In these past few days, I finally found someone who I could venture through a Palace with. I have to say that it was the best feeling I had in a long while, and I can't thank you enough for partnering up with me in that realm. But…well, if this letter was sent to you, then I guess you'll be alone in that world, just like I was for the past fifteen years. But do not worry. There will be other Persona users of your generation that will appear. I know that one day you will find them, and befriend them, and make a lifelong pact with them, to become the next wave of Phantom Thieves."_

 _"In the meantime, I hope the woman who got the letter instead of you will allow you to work at her shop. Yes, I know about how you gave the woman money for her child the other day. I know you will enjoy working at the flower shop while working a double-life as a phantom thief. Please know that wherever you go, I will always be there, in spirit, watching you grow into the fine young woman that I am sure you will become."_

 _From,_

 _Daichi Suzuki, the Totem_

The letter shook in her hands as tears poured from Guren's eyes. She bowed her head, sobbing as she finished her sensei's last letter to her. However, instead of grief filling her heart once more, it was now replaced with another emotion; one of gratitude. She couldn't thank Daichi enough for teaching her so many things in that other world. He was constantly watching over her without her knowing, and had even now gave her a new job, when no one else would give her one for her supposed criminal record. She couldn't think of any other words to say other than…

"Thank you, sensei…" she cried, "You…have no idea…how much I want to thank you…" For the next while, she continued to cry, missing Daichi and feeling hope coming back into her life once more.

When she finished, she wiped away the tears, and reread the slightly wrinkled letter again. So he was part of a different group of Persona users, and the only person alive was the previous owner of the sniper rifle she wielded. He was confident that she would meet this person, along with a new generation of Persona users. Her only concern, though, was if she wanted to get close to these people. I mean, it was already painful to lose someone close like Daichi.

"I guess…we'll see what life has in store for me." she muttered, pulling out her smartphone, seeing the Metaverse app icon, "For now, I'll do whatever I can to change the hearts of criminals, and continue the legacy that my sensei left behind for me…as a phantom thief."

* * *

 **And in a year's time, she will eventually join forces with the next generation of phantom thieves, defying the fate that was placed in front of her, changing her life forever.**


	7. Kong & Pixie: Conquering the Conqueror!

**March 26**

Inside Oda's house, the landlord sat in his chair, quietly, awaiting the arrival of the Shadow Break team. "They'll plan to try and steal my heart, just like they did with so many others in the past." He growled, "Now, I can finally see what their method is. What is the secret to their technique. How can they make someone confess their crimes? Whatever they try to do, I will be ready." He raised his pistol, which he always carries when cautious, whiles keeping his ears and eyes open for any unusual sights or sounds. To say he was overly cautious was an understatement.

Outside, in the alleyway near Oda's house, Haneru and Mia stood behind a dumpster, looking at the house of their target. "You'd best be ready, Haneru." Mia warned her son, "This is not gonna be an easy task. The security in his Palace will be on high alert. We might have to fight a few Shadows, and even Oda's Shadow, in order to steal the Treasure."

"I understand the task at hand. I'm not stupid." he answered, pulling out his smartphone and readying his Metaverse app, "We go in, take care of any hostiles who get in our way, don't kill Oda's Shadow, steal his Treasure, and get out as fast as possible before the Palace collapses on top of us. I remember everything you told me."

"Just making sure you knew." his mom stated, trying to hide the fact that she was impressed at her son's memory of the plan.

"Then let's get started." Haneru declared, rediscovering the keywords to Oda's Palace.

What the two were unaware of was the presence of another person standing on the far end of the alleyway, watching them. It was Nikolo Hideyoshi, observing his best friend and his mom. Ever since yesterday, when talking with Haneru on the rooftop of the apartment, he had been wondering what he was planning to do to Mr. Oda. The events last night involving some sort of calling card to Oda further increased that wonder and curiosity. He feared Haneru might do something illegal to get payback at Oda for the blackmail he mentioned before.

"What are you up to?" he asked, watching the mother and son hover over Haneru's smartphone. After a few seconds of watching, something happened. The air started to feel…he couldn't describe anything else other than 'odd'. Ripples of black and red formed in the air, distorting the entire area around him. When it died down, Nikolo found himself in an entirely different alleyway he didn't recognized.

"What the-?!" he gasped, looking about in complete shock, "What is this place?! H-How did I get here?!" He had no idea that this place was really Oda's Palace, nor did he understand the situation he was in at all. All he did know was that this was not a normal place, along with two characters the other end of the alleyway, wearing costumes he didn't recognize.

Oblivious to the hitchhiker they gained, Kong and Pixie looked at Oda's Palace, and saw much more lively the place was than the last time they were here. "Looks like Oda's awareness of his Treasure being taken is on high." Pixie stated.

"Guess that means his Treasure has revealed itself, now, right?" Kong asked, looking about.

"Right. Let's take the infiltration route to the Treasure, be as discreet at you can, and take it quick!" Pixie declared.

The two charged at the Palace, going along the route they had made before. Behind them, Nikolo watched them leave, shocked and amazed. "Those voices…was that Haneru and his mom?!" he asked, "What the heck did I step into?!"

* * *

 _(Opening: Life will Change (Persona 5))_

 **(Music intro)**

 _(Starting in a backdrop of a city with gray and black buildings and a red sky, the camera pans through the place, while the white shadows of eleven individuals racing and leaping passed walls. Then the words 'I am thou. Thou art I' form in cryptic newspaper letter cutouts, followed by the title of the series)_

 **It's not a game. I'm not a robot AI challenging you.**

 _(Ren Amamiya steps out of Leblanc, heading to school, with Morgana in his bag. Guren Sakura joins his side as they both leave, and the screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Theives looks, with the names 'Joker' 'Mona' and 'Lioness' under their respective people.)_

 **I'm not a phantom. I'm in your face and I'm here to see it through.**

 _(Mia puts on her shoes as she heads to work, with Haneru racing up behind her, dislodging his slippers and putting on his shoes to go to school. He waves his mom goodbye as the both open the door to walk out. Screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Thieves looks, with the names 'Kong' and 'Pixie' under each of them.)_

 **Right before your eyes, watch us multiply**

 _(Ryuji, Ann, and a silhouetted figure appear in three parts of the screen, then, with a flip of their respective confidant tarot cards, changing into their respective Phantom Thieves attire, with 'Skull' and 'Panther' listed to their respective owners.)_

 **Come to claim our rights - it's time**

 _(Three more silhouettes appear of the three remaining members, which shift to silhouettes of them in their Phantom Thieves outfits like the others.)_

 **As our power grows, trying to stop us shows…**

 _(Inside the interrogation room, Ren looks to Sae Nijima, who glares seriously at him, while she has pictures of victims he and the Phantom Thieves targeted on the table. Ren sees a sparkling blue butterfly pass his eyes, and he closes his eyes)_

 **(You) Might as well go try'n stop time**

 _(In the velvet room, the camera pans through the bars of the cell, past the twin prison wardens to Igor in his seat. He looks up at the protagonist with his usual grin, and the Metaverse Navigation app button appears behind him as he fades away, and the app activates.)_

 **(Song break)**

 _(From an overhead view of the central street of Tokyo, the area starts to shift as it changes to the Metaverse point of view. Tarot cards of every confidant fall down to the ground in the middle of the big street, where the Phantom Thieves stand, ready to go.)_

 **So you know that we're out there, swatting lies in the making.**

 _(Joker leads off summoning Arsene to his side, readying his dagger as he lunges at a masked Shadow, pulling it off and slashing at it. Lioness leaps in, stopping a pair of unknown Shadows with her rapier and stabbing them through the chest with a pair of thrusts.)_

 **Can't move fast without breaking. Can't hold on or life won't change.**

 _(Kong leap onto a head of a Shadow, whacking him in the back with his quarterstaff, knocking him to the ground before turning his staff into swords and making a falling stab onto him. Pixie uses Magaru with a twirl of her scythe, blowing away a bunch of Shadows. All four Persona users draw their guns out, pointing at four Shadows in the center of their circle, and fire at them.)_

 **And our voices ring out, yeah. Took the mask off to feel free.**

 _(Mona in van mode drives the known thieves, with Pixie at the wheel, as they journey through Mementos. They encounter a bunch of the main Shadow versions of human enemies, each transforming into large silhouettes of their respective monster forms, their eyes glowing.)_

 **Fought it out in the debris, now we know that life will change.**

 _(Mona transforms to normal as they all leap up into the air, Joker, Lioness and Kong taking off their masks to reveal their Personas, ready to attack.)_

 **(Music ending)**

 _(The scene shifts to several of their supporters doing their routines, from Sojiro running the Leblanc, to Mishima walking while looking at the Phan-Site on his phone, Akechi being interviewed on television, Takemi writing something at her clinic, to Kawakami teaching her class, Mifune flipping her tarot cards, then flipping over a calling card made by the Phantom Thieves. The scene shifts to a red and black, spiraling backdrop as the card along with all confidant cards fall into an abyss, replaced with the title of the series again.)_

* * *

The palace was definitely on high security since they came here last. Pixie and Kong were more cautious than before as they snuck around all the guards that were more alert than usual. A few times, they ended up taking on Shadows that were in pursuit of them. They couldn't escape them, so they ended up fighting them, defeating them, and moving on.

It took them maybe fifteen minutes before arriving at the oversized shogi board room again. They dashed across the large pieces, and made it to the room where the Treasure was at. When they opened the door, they discovered that, in replace of the smoky cloud of light, was a gold statue the same height as Mia, only it took the resemblance of Oda himself.

"This is his Treasure?!" Kong asked his mom, approaching the statue, "It's a statue of him!"

"In this world, yes. But in reality, it takes the form of something else. The true source of his desires."

"Guess we'll have to take it back in order to discover the true form." Kong walked over to the statue, "Now how to carry it out…"

Just as he reached the statue, Pixie suddenly noticed the small holes surrounding the ground around the statue. If there was something she knew about such sights, it's that those were never a good sign. "Look out!" she shouted, grabbing Kong by the scruff of his collar, and yanking him back just as there was a clicking sound. Almost out of nowhere, wooden poles shot out of the holes that shot all the way to the ceiling. Had Kong been standing on them, he would've been run through by these, or at the very least get shot up into the ceiling, and pinned there by the poles.

"Where did those things come from?!" Kong questioned in horror.

"Always stay vigilant when stealing a Treasure!" Pixie scolded him, "Look before you actually go for the steal!"

"H-How was I suppose to know it would be there?! It was clearly not there before!"

"Remember, this is Oda's cognition. He could change the area to fortify his defenses for the Treasure." Pixie stated, looking back at the Treasure, and gasping, "Oh, no!" Both of them looked as the floor underneath the statue rose up by some sort of mechanism, going to the floor above.

"It's leaving the treasure room?!" Kong gasped.

Just then, the two heard the Oda's maniacal cackle above them. "Did you really think I'd let you get away with the soul of my palace?!" he questioned them, "You children should know better than to underestimate your superiors in society!"

"Oda…" Pixie growled.

"We can't let him get away with the Treasure!" Kong barked, and he raced around his mom, heading back the way they came.

"Wait up! You can't rush in recklessly!" Pixie shouted as she rushed after her reckless son.

Within moments, they found themselves on the top floor of the palace again, where they saw a few guards blocking their path towards the room where they last saw Oda's Shadow. "Out of the way!" Kong barked as the soldiers transformed into their monster forms, being that of Saki Mitama and a Kusi Mitama.

"These things are powerful, so watch out!" Pixie stated, waving a hand forward, "Cordelia, come forth!" Her mask became her Persona, who unleashed a powerful blast of wind at the Saki Mitama. The Kusi, however, produced a green barrier in front of its' ally, and reduced the damage it would've taken. This was then followed by the Saki unleashing a blast of ice at Cordelia, knocking her and Pixie back.

"So that's how you wanna play things, huh?" Kong growled, summoning his Persona, "Then how about turning your own ally against you!" He unleashed Marin Karin on the Kusi, making it go into disarray, and unleash an icy attack on its' ally. It didn't cause too much damage to it, but it turned around and unleashed some sort of healing mist that cured it of its' brainwash effect. "Are you kidding me?!" the masked otaku gasped as his mom rose up to her feet.

"These Shadows have each other's backs." Pixie stated, "We have to work together in order to take out both of them. Let's start by keeping them away from one another."

Kong nodded in understanding, and looked to the two Shadows that looked like two halves of the Yin-Yang symbol. He thought back to the multiple anime and video games he had seen and experienced, thinking on every way to overcome these opponents. Finally, one idea came to mind. "Heaven and Earth Extinct Slaying Attack…" he muttered.

The two Shadows unleashed more icicles at Kong, who dodged to one side to avoid it. "I have an idea!" he shouted, "Boost me into the air!"

"Wait, what?!" Pixie questioned.

"Just trust me! I know what I am doing!"

The mother didn't know what her son was thinking, but she decided to give his idea a shot. As Kong rushed to her, she prepared her scythe, and held the handle in both hands horizontally. Her son then leapt up, turning around to face their opponents as he planted his feet on the handle of the scythe. Pixie shoved him up just as he jumped, and he got pretty close to the ceiling high above the Mitama, who looked up at him.

"You look towards heaven, and you get struck by the earth!" Kong barked, giving a sneaking look back at his mom, who realized what he was trying to do. She summoned her Persona once more, and used Cordelia's wind attack again, striking the Saki Mitama while it was distracted, sending it crashing to the ground. Kusi looked to its' ally, then at Pixie, ready to attack her.

"Look towards earth…" Kong fell towards the distracted Shadow, "And you get struck down by heaven!" He produced his quarterstaff, and slammed it hard on the Shadow's head, creating shockwaves that dazed it pretty badly.

"That was a pretty creative strategy." Pixie commended his plan.

"Let's go all out, and move on!" Kong declared, and the two went into an All-Out Attack, peppering the two Shadows with attacks before backing away, pulling off their signature poses. "You are unable to battle!" the otaku boy declared, as they bursted with black ooze before vanishing. With them gone, they proceeded forward to their destination.

They entered into Oda's room, and found a sight that was quite horrific. There was Oda's Shadow, standing in front of his gold statue Treasure, with several citizens bowing on their hands and knees to him like he was a god. So many of them were people the Kurosawa family recognized from the apartments the real life.

"What the hell is this?" Kong questioned, seeing these people in such a sickening position in front of the evil man.

"He really thinks of himself as better than all these people, doesn't he?" Pixie asked, walking into the room ahead of her son with a glare that could kill a normal man, "What an ego he ended up having…"

Kong looked to the people they were passing by. Not one person raised their head to even look at the two intruders in the room. "They are merely cognitions that Shadow of a man made up." his mom explained, as if reading his thoughts, "They only do what the ruler of the Palace says. If he tells them to bow before him for all eternity, praising his entire being, then they will do that, without question."

"That is sick!" Kong spat, seeing such blasphemy around him.

"This is the real world, boy." Shadow Oda spoke up, getting his attention, "Those who are under the level of superiority can only worship those who are above them. It is their only sanctum in this cruel, harsh world."

"Yeah, and who's fault is it that this world is cruel and harsh like this?" Kong growled, "It's people like you who choose to blackmail and cheat people around you in order to get what you want! You purposely demote people so you can stay on top!"

"What's wrong with dwindling the competition? That's also part of life!" Shadow Oda snickered, "The top of the hill is a small one, and those who don't survive the climb can only be sent back down to the dirt where they belong!"

"That's no excuse for what you have done!" Pixie barked, "You caused people to suffer in life instead of influencing them to do better! You chose to hang dark secrets and pasts people want nothing of over their heads! And most of all, you can't get over a grudge that spanned twenty years, and for something that was clearly your fault!"

"My fault?" Oda echoed, his smile turning into a frown, "I was not the one who was keeping secrets that were clearly meant for the police to know. You changed people's hearts, like you are trying to do to me. Not only that, but you constantly broke rules and rebelled against me over and over again! I had no choice but to set up the scene for you to fall, in order for you to confess what you had been doing!"

"Yeah, like you would believe a power like this." Kong spat, "Now why don't you do us all a favor and give that statue to us so we can change your heart!"

Oda gritted his teeth as he barked, "You are not the one who should be giving orders around here! I am the king in this place, just like I was when I was part of the police force, and like how I was when I won the shogi tournament! I was superior in every way possible!"

"Are you sure?" Pixie asked, getting his and her son's attention.

"Hmm?" Oda questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"You were dishonoring your role as a landlord, and you were dishonoring your role as a police officer. Tell me something; Did you really earn that title as the shogi champion? Or was there something you did that got you that win?"

Both Kong and Oda looked at her for a moment, then the former gasped, "Wait…you don't mean that…he…"

"My friend long ago did look into your matches, along with your final opponent." Pixie continued, "She had suspicions, but there were no confirmations. The finalist was quite skilled, and her win-loss ratio was much better than yours. And yet, based on the rumors, the finalist was suffering from nerves in that last match, and made a couple mistakes that gave you the win in the end. Pretty suspicious to suddenly lose your nerves at THAT point, wouldn't you say?"

Oda said nothing for a moment, then smirked. "I just happen to meet with her parents the night before the tournament. Her father was quite the alcoholic. He divulged some family secrets while under the influence that could destroy her fame, and I saw an opportunity rise up."

"So you threatened her with revealing these secrets, and told her to throw the match?!" Kong summed up, "That meant you never really earned that title! You cheated even back then!"

"What's wrong with going over the line to gain fame and fortune?" Oda questioned, his body pulsing with a dark energy, "I'm sure anyone would use that knowledge to their advantage. Everyone wants to be at a higher level than others! I just happen to find a way to reach it much faster and easier than others! I am at the top of the food chain, and eat up fools like you who struggle to rebel against my web of dominance!"

"What's going on?!" Kong questioned as the room around them started to shake, and Shadow Oda started to turn black and distort before them. The people bowing before him suddenly vanished, turning into black ooze as they were sucked into Oda's ever-growing body.

"His distorted desires are intensifying." Pixie stated, "When that happens, he takes on a powerful, monster-like form. Be ready to fight!"

Kong looked at who or what he was prepared to fight, and slight fear rose in his heart. When Oda's Shadow next appeared, he was far from human as possible. His body grew to five times the size he was before. He looked almost spider-like, black and pink-lined, and made out of something like wood. His eyes and nose were the same on his large face than before, but his mouth now had pincer jaws like an ant. His front two legs now had something that looked like chakrams attached, with spikes all around the outside of the ring, and shogi pieces that were labeled 'king' in the center. His other six legs were like hooked spikes, metallic, and dug into the floor, creating cracks. His Treasure now rested on his back, standing upright, symbolizing his dominance and power.

He roared as he reeled his head, and the walls and ceiling suddenly shattered about them. Kong and Pixie endured the splintered wood and debris that flew about them, now finding themselves outside again, on the top floor of the Palace. "YOU LOWLY FLIES CAN BEG FOR YOUR LIVES! I WILL NOT BE MERCIFUL TO EITHER ONE OF YOU!" he roared, his voice more distorted than before, "YOU WILL BE BOUND IN MY WEB, AND BE TAUGHT A HARSH LESSON OF WHAT HAPPENS TO THOSE WHO OPPOSE DOMINANT BEINGS…WITH YOUR LIVES!"

"I knew this would be the boss battle of his place, but that still doesn't stop my heart from racing on how crazy scary he looks right now!" Kong exclaimed.

"Steal yourself, and prepare to fight for your life!" Pixie responded, readying her scythe, "We need to beat him in order to gain that Treasure!"

At this point, Nikolo managed to get into the palace, and snuck around until he reached the front entrance. Course, sneaking around was no longer necessary, as the soldier Shadows seem to have vanished. Still, this didn't stop the young man's amazement at what he suddenly appeared in.

"What the hell is this place?!" he asked himself, "I know I was in the alleyway in front of Mr. Oda's house, so this should be where his house was. Why is there this huge place instead?!"

He suddenly heard a roar from high up, followed by the sound of something hammering the ground. Nikolo looked up to see debris falling to the ground a good distance away from him. He then gasped in horror at the sight of a massive, insect-like monster standing on the open top floor of the building. "What the fu-!" he gasped, but he was cut off as more debris came close to him, and he backed away from the spot.

High up, Kong and Pixie narrowly avoided an attack from the Monster Oda's chakram hands. "Sasuke, go!" Kong shouted, summoning his Persona to the field, who unleashed a blast of electricity at Oda. It struck him, and he yelped in pain.

"YOU WANNA DEAL WITH ELECTRICITY?! I'LL SHOW YOU SOME!" Oda boomed, "IBISHA!" He unleashed electric bolts from his chakrams, causing Kong to leap up and avoid getting hit. "YOU ARE OPEN! FURIBISHA!" He aimed his chakrams like pistols at the midair thief, and a pair of spikes shot out from each one. They came at Kong like rockets, and blasted him in the air.

"Haneru!" Pixie shouted, seeing her son fall to the ground far behind her, grimacing in pain.

"YOU'RE NEXT!" Pixie turned around and narrowly avoided spikes landing on top of her as Oda slammed his chakram down at her.

She skidded to a halt and summoned her Persona, shouting, "Strike him down with your holy light!" Cordelia unleashed a stream of bless-type energy at Oda. He screeched in pain as he was struck by it, sending him stumbling towards the edge, but not enough to knock him over.

Kong got back up again, shaking his head as he regained himself, then saw the damage his mother did as Oda got back up. "TIME TO FORTIFY MYSELF!" He barked, crossing his chakram hands in front of his body, "YAGURA!" His body glowed a purple aura, which Pixie understood as him improving his defense.

"What did he do?!" Kong asked, unsure of what he just did.

"He improved his defenses. It's just as the name says." Pixie started to make sense of what he was doing, "Yagura (Fortress), Ibisha (Static Rook), and Furibisha (Ranging Rook)…those are techniques used in shogi."

"Great! Can we use that to our advantage?" Kong asked.

"No. There are far too many different moves used in shogi. However, we do know at least three of his moves. It stands to reason he can only use so many kinds of moves."

"Then let's just improvise and demolish him!" Kong declared, charging at Oda, readying his crossbow. He aimed it at his head, and fired four shots. However, every bolt didn't seem to do much damage to him, what with his defenses up.

"WAS THAT SUPPOSE TO BE AN ATTACK?!" Oda demanded, and he did a horizontal slash with his chakram at Kong. It almost got him, too, had his mom not used a wind magic attack to blow him out of the way, directly underneath the big boss himself.

Kong, seeing where he was at, hastily thought of an idea, and chose to go in for an underbelly attack. "I got you now!" he growled, summoning his Persona again, and readying his quarterstaff. With a battlecry, he swung his weapon with all his might just as his Persona unleashed a close-ranged blast of electricity. The two converged together, and the monster Oda got winded by the attack. It didn't make him go airborne at all, but it did make him stumble and fall backwards over the ledge to the ground floor below. "We got him!" Kong cheered.

However, just as he was falling, Oda suddenly used his chakrams on the wall, and the spikes created large grooves going down the building. This caused the place both Pixie and Kong were on to be unstable, and the floor they were on started to break apart and collapse on them. "This is definitely not good!" Pixie cried out, "Kong, watch out!" Before he could get a word in, however, the floor beneath him broke away from the building, and slanted downward as it slid off and fell to the ground below, with the frightened Kong going with it. Crying out his name, Pixie raced towards the edge and did a flying leap, diving after him. Her fake wings spread out as they flailed behind her, almost looking like the real deal.

"Mom!" Kong shouted, panicking as he flailed in the air.

"Use your Persona!" Pixie shouted, summoning Cordelia again, who went underneath her and caught her, slowing her descent to the ground. Kong saw this and quickly called to Sasuke, who appeared underneath him, grabbing him. Together, the mother and son, with their Personas, flew away from the collapsing part of the Palace, landing in the courtyard on the opposite side of where the dazed Shadow Oda landed.

"You okay?" Pixie asked him as their Persona's dropped them to the ground.

"Yeah. I didn't think of my Persona having the ability to cushion my fall like that." Kong stated as both Personas went into mask forms once more, "Guess that'll be a benefit on occasions." Both he and Pixie looked back at Oda, who groaned in pain. "Think he's down for the count?"

"No. But you did manage to daze him with your attack." Pixie stated, "Let's go for an All-Out Attack while we have the chance." Her son nodded in agreement, and readied to attack.

"H-Haneru?" Kong froze, recognizing the voice. He and Pixie turned to see Nikolo slowly walking up to meet them, petrified at what he just witnessed.

"N-Nikolo?!" Kong gasped, shocked to see his best friend here.

"How did you end up in the Metaverse?!" Pixie asked, shocked to see him here, too.

"What…what is going on?" Nikolo asked, looking at the two, "What's with those costumes? And those things that carried you down before?"

Both mother and son looked to one another, not sure how to answer. They had no way of explaining this to him easily. However, before they could even try to, the ground behind them erupted with debris as the monster Oda rose up again with a roar. The trio turned to see him look back down, shouting, "YOU SHITTY LITTLE BRATS! HOW DARE YOU DESECRATE MY PALACE!"

"You brought that damage onto yourself!" Kong retorted, "Don't blame us for your mistakes, like how you did with my dad!"

"Haneru's dad?" Nikolo questioned, wondering why this monster would know his father. However, after looking at his face for a moment, he gasped, "Hold on…that…that thing's face looks like Mr. Oda!"

"To be precise, it's the version of Oda that he keeps hidden from the world." Pixie explained, "The monster that resides in his heart." She turned to Nikolo and ordered, "Keep a far distance away from us! We don't want you in the crossfire!"

"Crossfire?!" Nikolo echoed, then saw the monster Oda ready its' chakrams as it fired its' electric bolts out towards Kong.

"Persona, protect us!" Sasuke came out again and, using his weapons, blocked the electric attack. Kong felt the damage, but was able to endure it. _'At least my Persona has some resistance to electricity.'_ he told himself reassuringly.

"Wha-wha-wha-!" Nikolo stammered, shakily pointing at Sasuke in petrification.

"You panic much more easily than my son." Pixie muttered as she looked to the young man.

"Pixie, let's use a combined attack!" Kong shouted to his mom.

"Pixie?" Nikolo asked as Pixie nodded in understanding. He was stunned once again as he witnessed Haneru's mom's mask turn into the large woman that was Cordelia as she readied a Bless spell. Sasuke readied an Electric skill by creating static with his blades.

"FIRE!" Kong roared, and the two Personas unleashed their attacks as one, blasting Oda with a swirl of electricity and holy light. The monster screeched in pain as it took heavy damage from the combined attack, but not enough to take him down, unfortunately.

"DAMMIT, THAT HURT!" Oda barked at them, "SO THAT'S HOW YOU WANNA PLAY IT, HUH?! THEN I SHALL END THIS WITH MY STRONGEST PLAY!"

He pulled his chakram hands back, and the spikes on them grew to twice their length. Kong didn't need his mom's message when she cried out, "Watch out! He's going to use his most powerful attack!" The wheel-shaped weapons of Oda started spinning, with the large king shogi pieces standing still within them. They sounded like buzz-saws as they spun.

"CLIMBING SILVER!" Oda thrust his chakrams, which detached themselves from his arms, spinning at Kong and Pixie.

"Holy crap!" Kong exclaimed, attempting to leap over the chakrams as they came. However, just as he did so, the weapon swerved upwards, and struck him hard, causing untold pain to him. Pixie tried defending herself and Nikolo with Cordelia by having her use her shield and rapier to block the attack. However, she realized too late that the attack was too powerful, and it ended up caused Cordelia to be blasted backwards, equally causing pain to Pixie, and making her fall to her back. The shockwaves also caused Nikolo to fall on his back, but he was the one who got the least amount of damage, compared to the other two.

Oda cackled at the two Persona users as his chakrams came back to his arms. "FEEL THAT?! THAT IS THE GIFT OF AUTHORITY AND SUPREME POWER THAT WAS BESTOWED UPON ME! YOU CAN NEVER, EVER REACH THIS LEVEL WITHOUT STOMPING OUT THOSE WHO GET IN YOUR WAY! YOU REALLY THINK YOU HAD EVEN A CHANCE AGAINST ME?! IN THIS WORLD, AND IN THE OTHER WORLD, I AM KING!"

Kong shook so much due to the pain he was in. He was terrified at how close to death he was at that moment. Fortunately, he felt the healing energy as his mom used her Persona to cast a healing spell on him. Even so, it was a struggle to rise himself back up again. _'This is what anime heroes have to endure?! I almost died from that!'_ he told himself.

"This…this has to be some kind of dream!" Nikolo muttered, looking at his best friend and his mom, "This can't be real!"

It was only then that Oda suddenly noticed the third person in the vicinity. "WELL, IF IT ISN'T NIKOLO HIDEYOSHI. THE PESKY SECOND PROBLEM, NEXT TO THE KUROSAWA BOY!"

"There's no way that this is real!" the boy denied, "Are you really Oda?! Why are you trying to kill Haneru and Mrs. Kurosawa?!"

"WHY? THEY ARE A NUISANCE TO ME, THAT'S WHY!" Oda retorted, "THEY REFUSE TO OBEY ME, AND THEY TRIED TO STEAL THE HEART OF MY BELOVED PALACE! FOR THAT, THEY MUST DIE!"

"You can't be serious!" Nikolo stated, "I know you hated Haneru a lot, but you want to kill him, now?! That's seriously messed up!"

"Nikolo, what are you doing?" Pixie asked, using medicine on herself as she shakily rose to her feet, "You should leave while you have the chance!"

"OH, I DON'T PLAN TO LET ANY OF YOU LEAVE ALIVE! NOT EVEN YOU, BOY!" Oda's monster pointed out, "YOU GOT YOURSELF INVOLVED IN SOMETHING YOU SHOULD'VE STAYED AWAY FROM, AND NOW YOU WILL PAY BY DEATH!" Nikolo paled in fear of what he had said.

"He's not part of us or this fight!" Kong barked, finally getting to his feet after a struggle, "If coming onto the scene like this is a crime that is sentence by death, you really have a twisted heart!"

"ON THE CONTRARY, ANYONE WHO KNOWS THE TRUTH ABOUT THEIR KING MUST DIE. NO EXCEPTIONS!" Oda retorted, "IT IS SAD, THOUGH. IF HE ONLY HAD OBEYED HIS PROSTITUTE OF A MOTHER, HE WOULD'VE NOT LET HIMSELF GET INVOLVED WITH PROBLEM CHILDREN LIKE KUROSAWA!"

Something that escaped Oda's lips caused Nikolo to become shocked and appalled. "P-Prostitute?" he repeated, "What the hell do you mean? My mom is not a prostitute! She never was!"

"YOUR MOTHER WAS A PROSTITUTE WHEN SHE WAS IN HER YOUTH!" Oda stated, "RIGHT FROM HIGH SCHOOL, SHE CHOSE TO SELL HER BODY IN ORDER TO PAY RENT!"

"No…no, no, no! That's not true!"

"THE ONLY REASON SHE LEFT THAT LIFE WAS BECAUSE OF YOU! YOU HAD BEEN BORN DURING HER TIME, AND CHOSE TO LIVE HER LIFE AS A MOTHER, INSTEAD OF A SEX DOLL FOR MEN. COURSE, A HISTORY LIKE THAT IS SOMETHING SHE DID HER BEST TO HIDE, BUT I FOUND OUT! I MADE SURE SHE WOULD BE HAUNTED WITH THAT PAST, AND MADE SURE SHE FILLED ALL MY NEEDS AND FINANCES IN ORDER TO KEEP THAT HISTORY A SECRET FROM THE WORLD!"

"You're lying!" Nikolo barked, turning to Pixie, "Mrs. Kurosawa, please tell me he is lying!" Pixie didn't answer. She couldn't lie about what she and Haneru discovered before. However, the fact she looked sadly back at him, and didn't say a word, told him enough.

"YOU ARE NOTHING MORE THAN A SON OF A PROSTITUTE!" Oda boomed at him, "A MISTAKE MADE BY Kiya HIDEYOSHI, AND A CONSTANT REMINDER OF HER PAST! IT'S PEOPLE LIKE YOU THAT ARE LOWER THAN HUMAN BEINGS!"

Nikolo sank to his knees, the grief in his heart overwhelming. He couldn't believe what he was learning. A truth that he couldn't face was being boomed into his ears without restraint. And since Mia didn't even deny it to be false, that made it all the worse. Did Haneru know? If he did, how long did he know this?

"Kiya may have made mistakes in her careers in the past, but she has moved on from them!" Pixie retorted, "She is a wonderful mother, and someone who works hard in order to pay rent. She's left that past behind, and yet you chose to haunt her with it! You make sure people suffer so they are easy prey for you to feast upon! It's absolutely sick that you would stoop so low!"

"Mrs. Kurosawa…" Nikolo looked to her, touched by how much she was defending his mom.

"THAT DOESN'T CHANGE THE FACT THAT THIS BOY IS A MISTAKE, JUST LIKE YOUR SON!" Oda barked, crawling towards where Nikolo and Pixie were, "YOU ALL ARE NOTHING BUT A DISGRACE TO SOCIETY! YOU ARE SHAMEFUL TO US WHO WORKED HARD TO NEVER LOSE TO ANYONE, AND RAIN SUPREME ABOVE ALL! REBELS LIKE YOU MUST BE EXTERMINATED BEFORE YOU POLUTE THIS WORLD WITH YOUR HALF-ASS FANTASIES AND RIDICULOUS DREAMS! DIE!"

He raised his chakram arm, within range of the two. Pixie knew she couldn't endure a close-ranged attack like this, especially after the last attack. Still, she prepared to protect Nikolo with her life if need be. Without a sense of remorse in what he was about to do, he slammed his chakram down at the two.

Suddenly, a powerful blast of lightning shot at the arm, striking it hard and making it divert its's path, missing the targets. Oda looked over and saw Kong standing there, his Persona floating behind him.

"Your mouth just crossed the line. Now you are gonna pay, you arrogant freak!" he growled, and he raised his head to reveal eyes that almost glowed in rage, "YOU'RE THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE EXTERMINATED, YOU EFFIN' ASSHOLE!"

 _(Cue 'Independence' by ReoNa/Elza)_

He charged forward at Oda, his Persona flying right behind him. "DO YOU WANT TO DIE THAT BADLY! FURIBISHA!" the monster demanded, raising one of his chakrams, and fired a pair of spikes like rocket at him. Kong swerved around the attack, avoiding all hits, but not slowing down in the slightest.

He revealed his hidden blades, got underneath Oda, and sliced one of his hooked legs. His rage-induced slice made the leg come clean off. Oda roared in pain as Kong, not slowing down in the slightest, went to the other leg next to it, and sliced it off, as well. "Sasuke, cleave the rest of them off!" he ordered, and his Persona raised his twin katanas, and flew past the remaining four legs of Oda. Kong was right behind him as he made it to the backside of the monster, and after sheathing his blade, the remaining four claws came off, making Oda howl in pain as he had nothing to support his body, and it collapsed to the ground.

"IM-POSSIBLE!" Oda growled, turning round to see Kong suddenly high in the air above him. Pixie and Nikolo were baffled at how much the tides had changed just like that.

The angered Persona user eyed the gold statue attached to Oda's back, and readied Sasuke. "Let's see if gold conducts here just like in the real world!" he growled, pointing a finger at the statue, "Blast away!" Sasuke sent a blast of electricity at the statue. Science still seemed to be right in the Metaverse, as it conducted the electricity to the point of shocking the entire large body of Oda.

"Someone like you has no right to have a statue of yourself like that!" Kong barked, landing on the stunned Oda's back, "Let's get that off of you!" He dug his blades underneath the gold statue's base, and tried pulling out via leverage.

"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS!" Oda growled, turning his head as far around to see what Kong was doing, "I WILL STAB YOU WITH SO MANY HOLES, THERE WILL BE NOTHING LEFT OF YOUR BODY, YOU SHITTY LITTLE BRAT!" He raised his chakram arms, which were flexible enough to target the otaku boy on his back.

Suddenly, Pixie made her appearance by getting close to one of the arms, and using her scythe, sliced off one of the arms in one slash, causing Oda to screech in pain. "Did you forget that I am here, as well?" she questioned, bouncing off Oda's back as she made her way to the other arm, "I won't let you harm my son, or anyone else, ever again!" She slashed off the other arm, leaving Oda with no limbs attached to him.

"Thanks, Pixie!" Kong called to her, smiling as she came back to his side, and joined him in his effort to pry the gold statue off of Oda's back with her scythe. Sure enough, with the combined effort of the two's weapons, they painfully ripped off the statue, causing it to collapse on its side on the ground next to the monster, who was in so much pain, he was barely conscious.

"Time to end this!" Kong shouted as he and Pixie leapt high up, then dove down at him in an All-Out Attack, peppering the defenseless Shadow until he spouted with black and red ooze, howling in pain. His body suddenly faded away, revealing the Shadow of a man himself, falling to his hands and knees, sobbing from the trauma of what he had experienced.

Nikolo could only watch in awe and amazement as he looked at the two, who landed in front of Oda, their posture signaling that they knew they had won. _'This is…amazing!'_ he told himself, looking more at Haneru than anyone else, _'I never thought something like this would be real. It's like an anime or a video game, only in reality, and Haneru became the hero! He actually became the hero like he had envisioned!'_

Kong and Pixie approached Oda as he looked up, fearing the two in front of him. "How can I lose? I can't lose!" he cried, "I have to always win, no matter what! I never want to experience the feeling of losing!"

"Are you that afraid of losing?" Pixie asked, both angry and confused.

"I…I have to be a great man, just like so many people expect me to!" Oda sobbed, "If people saw me fail, then I lose people's praise. A loser is no good to anyone!"

"So…in the end, you cheated and blackmailed for so long because you were afraid to lose?" Kong asked, his eyes narrowing in disgust, "Man, and I thought you couldn't be any more pathetic. You wanted to win in the shogi tournament, so you blackmailed your opponent. You wanted to find the truth out about my mom, dad, and their friends by any means necessary as a police officer. And in the end, you tyrannized the residence of the apartments you owned in order to prove to them you are supreme. It's so sad, I can't even laugh at you."

He knelt down and raised a blade to the frightened landlord's face. "You spent your whole life trying to win, no matter what, that you failed to realize that there is a benefit in losing!" Kong spat, "Do you realize that losing is a far better teacher than winning? You learn from what made you fail, and you learn not to go that path. Sure, it sucks, but you overcome and move on. I'm an otaku, I suck at making friends, and I suck in History class, but I still stick to who I am, rather than cheating and letting my pride get the better of me, like you did. That's why we won, and you lost!"

"P-Please, don't kill me!" Oda pleaded, falling backwards to keep himself away from the boy who bested him, "I'll do anything! I'll call off the payments! No more blackmail! Just let me live!"

"Oh, I'll let you live." Kong responded, raising himself back up again, "I'll let you live by changing your heart. Go and confess your crimes to everyone you harmed. Live in the understanding of what if feels like to properly lose, for the rest of your life! And one other thing…" He sheathed his blades into his quarterstaff form, and slammed one end on the ground as he barked, "Don't you dare get anywhere near my family! Ever again!"

The Shadow fearfully looked at him, then down at the ground, sobbing, "Okay…I'll leave you alone, and confess what I have done. You have my word." His body started to glow, and in a bright light, he vanished, leaving the trio alone.

"You did well, Haneru." Pixie stated, causing him to turn to her, "You really inherited your father's self-righteous heart."

"In many of the anime and video games I have played and watched, heroes don't always kill the villains, and I now know why." Kong stated, "If I did kill him, I would feel guilty for doing so. Better to have him drown in his guilt for what he had done."

"Haneru?" The two turned to see Nikolo walk up the the two.

"You okay, buddy?" Kong asked, worried slightly after learning the truth.

"I'll be fine, but what happened to Oda?" Nikolo asked.

"He's returned to his real self in the other world." Pixie explained, "We just have to steal his Treasure, and that'll change his heart."

"Right then. Then let's…" Kong turned to the large statue, only to be surprised at how much it shrunk. What was once a statue, it was pretty much the size of a trophy. "What happened to it?" he asked, reaching down and grabbing it in one hand.

Suddenly, the ground and everything else around them suddenly started to shake like crazy, causing the palace, and everything else around them to break apart. "The Palace is collapsing!" Pixie called out, "We have to leave, now!"

"Right!" Kong answered, deciding to ignore the change in the Treasure, and pursue Pixie and Nikolo as they escaped the Palace. The adult of the group used her Metaverse app, and used it to exit to the real world once more, where everything was the same as it was before.

"Phew! Made it!" Haneru sighed, doubling over in exhaustion. All of his fatigue from fighting Oda before was starting to come in full on him.

"Can…someone please tell what that was all about?!" Nikolo questioned, "What was all that shaking in that place before? And why has suddenly everything turned back to normal?!"

Mia looked at the nav as it said, "THE DESTINATION HAS BEEN DELETED." "Looks like the Palace has collapsed." she stated, "We can't go back there anymore."

"So…does that mean we accomplished everything needed to change his heart?" Haneru panted, "When will the change occur?"

"Scuse me, I know that there was a lot of drama before…" Nikolo started, really irritated, "…but now that things have settled, CAN SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHAT I JUST HAD TO DEAL WITH?!"

"Right…" Haneru answered, startled at his sudden exclamation, "We should give you the full story, right?"

"We might as well, since he was in that world." Mia answered, "Let's go back to my place. I'll give you something to eat and drink while we talk. Oh, by the way, Haneru…" she pointed down at the ground behind him. He turned and saw the miniaturized statue now suddenly glow, then transform into…

"A shogi board?" Haneru asked, picking it up, "It's really well made. Incredible details on the side…" He could see the top of the board was also a double-door lid, and he opened up one half of the board to reveal the shogi pieces, which were made of glass, and were finely cut, and had the labels of each piece on some form of permanent marker.

"Where did that come from?!" Nikolo asked, surprised.

"That is the true form of the Treasure." Mia answered, "I'll explain it when we go home. I'm very exhausted."

* * *

Moments later, the trio made it back home. The sun was setting, and after some convincing, Mia got Kiya's permission to have her son over for dinner. It was touch and go for a while, considering the argument she and Haneru had a couple days ago. However, after some apologizing and convincing, Mia was able to get through to Kiya. While she and Haneru made pasta, Nikolo was given the story and explanation about the Metaverse, and everything Haneru also learned about that world, too. By the time they had finished explaining, they had already started digging into their food.

"This…is a lot to take in…" Nikolo muttered, putting down his fork, his expression amazed and confused, "The Metaverse, Personas, Palaces…It all sounds so unreal. And yet, I was there. I saw it, and felt it. I can't deny what I had just gone through."

"By the way, I have to make sure on something. Did the Metaverse app end up on your smartphone?" Mia asked with a look of concern.

"Actually, I was in so much of a hurry to find out what you guys were up to, I forgot to bring it." Nikolo answered.

"Then it's probably a good chance that it wasn't installed on your smartphone, since you didn't bring it with you. Still, you should go and double check. If it is there, delete it at once. I don't want you to get involved in it, like my son."

"Yeah, I agree." Haneru seconded, "You didn't awaken to a Persona, and it is far too dangerous in that place, too."

"Don't worry. I already had my fill of craziness from that short period of time." Nikolo stated, turning to Mia, "Besides, you said before that we can no longer go back to that place again since you guys stole Oda's 'Treasure'."

"Yeah, speaking of which…" Haneru started, looking to the shogi board on the table with them, "Why did the statue turn into a shogi board?"

"If I had to guess, it might've been a prize or a gift to him." Mia assumed, "He must've been so confident in winning in shogi, that he refused to lose, no matter what. It drove him to even blackmailing his opponent in the nationals."

"And he just couldn't stop from there on out." Haneru continued, narrowing his eyes, "Even as a police officer, and as a landlord, he was so addicted to winning, he became a horrible man just to get his way. I just can't feel sorry for him, whatsoever."

Nikolo listened for a bit, but still had one more thing he had to make sure. The horrible truth he learned from Oda. "So…was it all true? What he said about my mom?"

Haneru and Mia looked to one another sadly. There was no way to answer easily that his mom was a prostitute in her youth, and he learned it in the most painful way possible. Mia chose to be the one to answer, as she replied, "Yes. We learned it from the Metaverse only a couple days ago. It is true."

Nikolo's heart sunk, and he looked down, his mind thinking through what he had said about him and his mom. "So…I was born around that time she was…but that means my dad might not be my…"

"Nikolo, I'm so sorry." Haneru apologized, sympathetically looking at his best friend, "I'm sorry you had to learn it so harshly, like that."

"What do you intend to do, now?" Mia asked him with concern, "It might draw suspicion if you know about your mother's secret past. We can't let anyone know about the Metaverse."

"But even so, how can I even look at my mom, now?" Nikolo asked, placing his head in his hands, "I am a prostitute's son. I was born without meaning to be. And the man that is suppose to be my father might not actually be biologically him."

"None of us know the full story. Not even Oda." Haneru pointed out, "But my mom was right before. Kiya is a great woman, and a great mother. She has worked hard to pay off Oda for this long. You can't be angry at someone who has worked so hard for her family."

"I know…but still…" he looked at his drink, seeing his reflection.

"You should put up a brave face. It won't do anyone good if you go home with an expression like that." Mia pointed out, walking around the table and placing a hand on his shoulder, smiling, "Things will turn out alright. I assure you."

"Yeah…I'll try to put on a brave face." Nikolo assured her, standing up from the table, "I should head home now. Thanks for the food." He walked out of the apartment, closing the door behind him.

"I hope things go well for him at home." Haneru muttered, "I don't want there to be a rift between him and his mom."

"It will take time, but I pray things will be alright." Mia sighed, sitting down, looking at Haneru, "More importantly, I want to tell you again on how well you handled Oda at the end. I'm sure that after that stern talk, and after we stole his Treasure, he should have his change of heart."

"But when will that be?" Haneru asked, taking Nikolo's plate and bringing it to the kitchen, "How will we know it actually happened?"

"I guess only time will tell when it happens." Mia told him, "I can't be too sure when it happens, only that it'll happen soon. Even so, the tense waiting for things to happen is always something I hated."

Haneru was already feeling anxious as it was, especially with the addition of his best friend on his consciousness. However, before he could think any further on this, he gave a big yawn. "It has been a long day." Mia told him, "We should both gets some sleep."

The otaku boy nodded in agreement, and stood up, stretching his arms. He was darn tired and worn out from fighting the monstrous Oda. He looked back at the shogi board they got, wondering what they were gonna do with it. Deciding to think about it later, he walked into his room, and closed the door behind him, almost immediately falling asleep.

Mia looked at the shogi board herself as she wandered over to the kitchen to clean the dishes. "It has been a long time, hasn't it, Noriaki?" she muttered to herself, "The dangerous perils of stealing a Treasure…the risks of causing a mental shutdown…" She look down at the plate she was unconsciously washing, and smiled happily. "I missed it all. The thrill and results of it all. This was…a lot of fun."

* * *

 **March 28**

It had been a couple of days since the Kurosawa family stole the Treasure. It was midday, and Haneru was laying on his back, sitting on the rooftop of the apartment building. He had his earphones in, and was listening to one of his songs, 'Thrill, Risk, Heartless' by LiSA. However, his mind wasn't fully ingested into the music, as he had so many other things on his mind.

The first of which was Oda's change of heart. His mom went over to his house yesterday, and learned that he was sick in bed. She assured that this was just part of the process of his change of heart, but that didn't ease Haneru's conscious. There was the risk of a mental shutdown, and worried it might lead to that.

The second part was Nikolo, who he hadn't heard from. In fact, there was no word on his family at all. This was either because Kiya was still angry with him, or that there was some sort of family drama happening at their house. There was no way telling which of these possibilities was true, or if either one of them was true. Still, it wasn't like he could go up and ask him, since he wasn't allowed at his house.

Finally, there was the move itself. His mom and him already finished packing everything away this morning, and was ready for the move tomorrow. As for the shogi board, Mia decided to keep it, as they didn't have one, and it would be nice to have one in case they had guests at their new home. Haneru thought about it, and depending on what happens to Oda, he had mixed feelings on whether to keep it or throw it away. Only time would tell on that result.

His eyes were closed as he listened to another song, 'Clear' by Maaya Sakamoto. As he was partway through the song, he received a kick to his foot, and looked up to see Nikolo standing there, looking down at him. "Hey, Nikolo!" he gasped, hastily taking his earbuds off and storing them away.

"Hey, Haneru…" he greeted him half-heartedly. He went and sat down next to Haneru, who looked concerned and worried at his best bud.

For what seemed like forever, there was silence between them. Finally, Haneru took the chance, and asked, "How are things at home?"

"I'm doing my best to keep mom from suspecting what had happened." he answered, "Still, I am keeping my distance from her as much as possible. It's…really hard to not admit I know about her…"

Haneru looked sadly at him. He couldn't say, 'I understand', because he didn't know at all. He could only feel sorry for his best bud. Still, it at least told him that she didn't know about what was really going on, and there was no drama at home.

He smiled as he assured him, "Things will turn out alright. I know it."

"How do you know?" Nikolo asked, looking to him, "This isn't an anime or a video game. Things just can't spontaneously change for the better just because you say it will. Even with those powers of yours, there isn't anything you can do in that kind of a situation."

"I know." Nikolo was taken aback at Haneru's understanding, "But still, the only thing I can do is believe things'll turn out alright. I can't doubt myself or what I believe will happen, or else I might jinx it. So until things do turn out badly, I won't stop believin', like that American song by Journey."

Hearing him make a comparison to what he said to something else like this gave Nikolo a good reason to smile. "You are seriously a self-proclaimed otaku, whether in music, anime or video games."

"Always have, and always will be." Haneru confidently stated. Both of them shared a small laugh. The tension of anything outside their friendship had temporarily disappeared, which was nice, even for a few seconds.

Just then, there was a ring on Haneru's smartphone, and he looked at the name on it. "It's from mom!" he noticed.

Nikolo also heard a ringing on his phone, and picked it up. "My mom is calling, too." The two looked at each other. This was no mere coincidence, was it?

Haneru answered her with, "Hey, mom. What's going on?"

"Haneru, I think it's happening." the words Mia said made the uneasiness come back in him, "Mr. Oda is holding a gathering at the meeting hall in the town rec center. He wants everyone from the apartment buildings he owned to arrive there."

"Is he…really gonna confess?!" Haneru asked, shocked.

"It is more than likely." Mia answered, "Anyways, hurry up and get over here."

Haneru ended the call, and turned to Nikolo, who hung up on his mom, as well. "Oda's holding an assembly? Why?" he asked, turning to him, "Could this be related to what you guys did in the Metaverse?"

"More than likely, as my mom said." he answered, "Let's go and see the results."

* * *

Moments later, the two boys and their parents were standing in the middle of a large group of people, all of which were home-owners of the apartments that Oda owned. They were in the gymnasium of the rec center, standing in front of the small stage, which only had a microphone stand on it.

All throughout the room, people were wondering what was gonna happen. "Why would Oda have this assembly so out of the blue?" "Do you think it has to do something with the damage to his house a few nights ago?" "I heard that he was given a calling card of sorts, from the Shadow Break." "That group of thieves who stole people's hearts around twenty years ago? That group?!"

Haneru, Mia and Nikolo could only wait in silence, anxiously close to the stage, wondering where Oda was.

Finally, after a few minutes more of this torturous waiting, Oda arrived. The first indication of his presence was the sound of his walking stick hitting the wooden steps as he went up to the stage. They saw the look on his face, and there was nothing but guilt showing on it. The look of a man who knew he did something horribly wrong.

The moment he stood in front of the microphone, he spoke up. "I…have committed so many sins. I had caused so many of you grief and pain by blackmailing and interfering with your lives. I did so many things that a landlord should never do. I treated you like peasants. And for that, I am so sorry."

The crowd began murmuring in shock at what he was talking about. Oda, the landlord who always got what he wanted, ended up apologizing for his misdeeds? No one was expecting this at all…well, except for two people in the room.

"I had grown up a horrible man, doing anything I could to win. As a police officer, and even as a shogi player, I cheated, lied, and forced others into submission so that I can step over them to continue to the top." He dropped his cane, and slumped to his knees, sobbing, "I don't deserve any winning titles. I don't deserve this power. I am a failure and a lie wrapped in clothing, and I can't begin to apologize to the hundreds…no, thousands of people I have manipulated and demoted in order to get what I want."

He turned to the Kurosawa family, who were within range of his teary eyesight, and added, "Most of all, I want to apologize to the Kurosawa family. I was obsessed with Mrs. Mia Kurosawa, even when she was high school student. I framed Haneru for damaging my house a couple months ago, just out of spite that I had for his father. I treated him so horribly, and so many other people his age because I merely considered them delinquents. In truth, I am worse than that. I hate the man I am more than the actual delinquents who I arrested in my past. I am the one who should be arrested. Please…someone do this favor for this foolish, old man!" He bowed to the people, sobbing like crazy.

The house-owners were in complete and udder shock. Some people began looking at each other, confused, and even somewhat relieved. The man had been a landlord with an iron fist. Now, he was a shabby old man who wanted nothing more than to repent for what he had done. Nikolo, in particular, was stunned. He half-expected this to happen, but it still didn't make the surprise any more unexpected. What Mia and Haneru did in that world actually changed Oda's heart. They were able to do the impossible.

Mia looked at Oda for a second, then sighed in relief. _'It actually worked out.'_ she told herself, _'We changed Oda's heart. Now our lives can move on.'_

It was at this point that she noticed that Haneru had left her side. She scanned the room, and was shocked to see him crawling up onto the stage, in front of everyone else. Oda looked up at him, seeing the frown on his face as he pulled out his phone, ready to dial. "If you are serious about turning yourself in, I'll do the honors." Haneru told him, "I'll call them in. After that, you tell them everything you have done."

"Yes…yes, please." he begged, "Forgive me, Haneru. Forgive this man for spiting you because of a grudge that should've been long gone!"

"I'll forgive you when the cops arrive." Haneru answered, "Whatever you do, don't try to kill yourself because of your sins. As an otaku, I'll give you a quote from an anime I like: 'Death is never an apology.' You got that?"

"Yes…" Oda sobbed, bowing his head back to him, "You have my word. I won't commit suicide."

"Good." Haneru answered, dialing 119 on the phone, and calling in the police.

Moments later, the cops arrived, and arrested Oda. He left without resisting, leaving the rest of the crowd amazed. While most conversed amongst themselves, some approached Haneru and apologized, mainly those who 'witnessed' him do the damage to Oda's house, and for filing noise complaints as well. It was a bit overwhelming to say the least, but at least people were forgiving him, as well as some of the other kids around his age who had also been framed by Oda.

Kiya approached Haneru last, with Nikolo by her side. "Haneru, I want to say how sorry I am for getting angry at you." she apologized, "You had the right to get angry with me, since I lied in order to protect myself."

"I'm sure you had your reasons." Haneru stated, "People have pasts transgressions that they want to keep in the back of their closets."

Kiya looked down, more than likely thinking on the transgression she had tried to keep secret. She turned to her son, and said, "Nikolo, I also want to say how sorry I was to you for making you lie about not being with Haneru a couple months ago. Oda…had discovered a past life of mine that I wished I never took part in. It…did involve you and your father."

"Wait, what?" Nikolo asked, surprised to here his dad's name added to the list.

"I…did some horrible things that no proper woman should." she said in a roundabout way, "But then I met your father, who knew I was capable of doing much more than what I was doing. So when you were born, I knew he was right. I left that life behind, married him, and raised you with all the love I had. It's…really hard to tell you what I did, but…"

"It's okay, mom." Nikolo assured her, and she looked surprised, "I…don't need to know what you did, and you don't have to tell me. You're a great mom, and I love you." he smiled up at her as he finished, "Plus, with Oda out of the way, we can go about with our lives, right? Let the past stay in the past."

Kiya looked amazed at her son's words, but grateful nonetheless. She hugged him, tears coming out of her eyes. She was so worried to tell him the truth, and to shatter her family apart because of what she was.

Nikolo knew her mother was guilty of her past, and her words told him as much. However, two things relieved him. One, he was the reason she left the life of a prostitute behind. The second was that his dad was his real biological father. That was all the more reason to not be upset at his mom. He looked at Haneru and Mia over his mom's shoulders, seeing the two smile at him. He smiled back, assuring them things would be fine from now on.

The Kurosawa mother and son walked back home, thinking on the event that was longer than it really was. The two remained in silence, with the only sound coming from the jangling of keys from Mia's purse. Finally, Haneru muttered, "So he really did confess. We changed his heart."

"If it wasn't obvious enough." Mia answered, looking at him, "Are you satisfied with the results?"

"Yeah…" Haneru smiled at her, "That was the best feeling ever! Now we don't have to worry about anything when we move!"

"It was touch and go for a while, but we managed to change his heart." Mia stated, "Still, I can't help but feel relieved it was all over…and a little sad, too."

"Why?" Haneru asked, confused.

Mia slowed to a halt, looking at the ground. "It brought back so many early memories of your father and I. He and I were the first of the Persona users in Shadow Break. After that, all our other friends joined in, becoming part of our group as we changed the hearts of so many with distorted desires. They were tough times, but the results after stealing people's Treasures and changing their hearts were rewarding, as you can feel."

"So, does that mean there might be more people in this world with Palaces like Oda's?" Haneru asked, intrigued, "Then that means if we go into these Palaces, we can change the hearts of criminals and make them confess their crimes."

"I know where you are going with this." Mia realized, "You wanna continue being a phantom thief."

"Well duh!" the otaku exclaimed, leaping ahead of mom and doing multiple postures, "Infiltrating the hearts of villains, stealing their Treasure, beating them into changing their hearts, and being the hero for so many people, while being discreet about it all! It's something I dream of becoming for so long! I so wanna continue this life!"

Mia pondered on it a bit, then answered, "Well, I'm sure we can still do it. The thing is, it might help us find where your father is, too."

"Wait, what?" Haneru settled abruptly, looking at her.

"But, this is something we can talk about tomorrow." she stated, "Let's go and get ready for the move tomorrow."

"Wait, what do you mean it might help us find where dad is?" her son asked, wandering next to her.

"It's a bit complicated. I'll tell you in the car as we move. Promise." Haneru nodded in understanding, but wondered what she meant by what she had said before.

* * *

 **March 29**

The moving bus had arrived that morning, with the movers coming in to help move Haneru and Mia's stuff. Nikolo and his mom joined in with moving their stuff. It took them about thirty minutes before they brought all the stuff down to the truck. Any small things they wanted to keep with them for the trip were placed in Mia's car, which was a blue Suzuki Swift Hatchback.

"Thanks for the extra hands there, Kiya." Mia thanked their extra hands.

"I wish my husband could help, but he was at work today." she explained, "I'll tell him you said goodbye, okay?"

"Of course. Thank you." Mia thanked her.

Meanwhile, Haneru and Nikolo were separate from the two as the former conversed, "I'll be sure to stay in contact with you. You are my best friend, after all."

"I'll be sure to do the same." Nikolo answered, "Be sure to tell me about anything that is happening, whether its the normal stuff, or…" he drew closer to his ear and whispered, "Anything to do with that Metaverse stuff."

"You got it!" Haneru answered with a thumbs up, "If you can, and once I settle in, you should definitely come to Saitama."

"Sure. My mom was thinking I should get a day job, anyway." his friend chuckled, "I'll save up some money and come see you."

"Let's go, Haneru!" Mia called to him, opening the passenger side car door.

"Coming!" he answered, then raised a hand to Nikolo, "Until next time, my otaku brother."

"Same to you, you total otaku." he answered, taking his hand, and shaking it. After that, Haneru raced to the car, and entered in, with his mom getting into the driver's side. Once they were buckled in, they started up the car, and drove ahead of the truck as it followed behind. Kiya and Nikolo waved them off as they went along the street, before heading onto the main road to Saitama.

After a short while of being on the road, Haneru asked, "So what was it you were saying about finding dad? Is he in the Metaverse somewhere?"

After a few seconds of thinking, Mia replied, "I think so, though I can't be too sure. As I told you before, he left when you were only two. From what I remember, he said that he was called upon to face a deity that was rising up to meddle in the Metaverse."

"A deity? You mean like a god or something?!" Haneru asked, startled.

"Yes. You see, in the past, the Shadow Break crew and I were trying to figure out the mysteries of the Metaverse, mainly where the masses subconscious seem to collect at; Mementos."

"Mementos?" Haneru echoed, "What kind of a place is that?"

"It's where Palaces seem to originate from." Mia explained, "We were not sure about the place ourselves, but we knew we had to stop the Palaces from sprouting. However, back then, we couldn't fully get into the deepest parts of the place. There was also an opposer we were dealing with; someone who was trying to stop us and defeat us."

"Someone wanted to stop you from changing people's hearts?" Haneru asked, confused, "Why would they do that."

"It's how fate seems to work. One side wants to do things for justice, while the other has ill ideas on taking out opponents for their own or for partners benefits. However, we bested the opposer, and saved many lives that could've been destroyed by that guy. After that, we decided to go about our daily lives."

"That is, until that deity arrived, right?" Haneru asked.

"Yes. Your father knew the details, but didn't share them all to me." Mia stated, "However, he didn't want me involved, and wanted me to stay and raise you until he came back. He took four others with him. My two other friends, Daichi and Wakaba, decided not to go, for their own reasons. That was the last time I ever saw him, or my other friends."

"You think dad and the others might be in Mementos?" Haneru asked.

"I guess so. However, I do know this; We cannot go into Mementos alone." she told him, "I believe that the next generation of Persona users might be coming about, soon."

"Next generation?" Haneru echoed.

"Yes. That includes a new Trickster, like your father. Plus, I bet there is a new opposer out there, as well. Have you been seeing the news about people suffering mental shutdowns and psychotic breakdowns in the past couple years?"

"Actually, yeah. I saw a lot of that on the news for a while." Haneru answered.

"I tried to feign ignorance to it all, but after you brought us to the Metaverse again, I have no doubt what is going on. There is another opposer out there, causing those things. They have been doing it for a while. I can't tell who, since the targets are too inconsistent to name one opponent. Whoever it is, we have to stop him or her from doing any more damage."

"And to do that, we need to find this Trickster." Haneru summed up.

"Right. I know one will appear somewhere, and more than likely we will meet him or her when the time is right."

Haneru looked ahead at the road before them. He couldn't help but be fully embraced in the news and objectives that his mom set out for them. _'A next generation of Persona users, Mementos, a Trickster and an opposer. Seems to me like this year is gonna be quite the bizarre one, but a fun one. Time to change hearts, and do it in the style of a hero.'_

"Let me put some music in." Haneru insisted, pulling out his smartphone and putting in some tunes.

 _(Cue 'Wake up, Get Up, Get Out There' by Lyn)_

Haneru rested back in his seat, thinking on the challenges ahead, while listening to the music. Mia looked to her son, then at the road ahead. While still holding some worry about continuing this life, she knew that this was something she had to do. All for the sake of finding Noriaki and her friends.

* * *

All the pieces were in place. On the road ahead of the two were several more encounters with people who would impact their lives. Coming out of a flower shop in Yongen-Jaya, one of these people was waving out a bee that was being quite persistent. "Jeez, I hate it when those little buggers start coming back in the spring." Guren sighed. She looked at the sky above her, seeing the sun with large clouds coming in. Rain was about to come soon.

"Looks like rain is about to pour soon. Might not get many customers at that point." she sighed, going back inside, "Oh, well. If we don't get many customers, I can always go for my next target, and change another person's heart." She smiled as she entered back into the flower shop, wondering what fate has in store for her. Knowing her luck, fate will throw something unexpected at her. Little did she know she was right.


	8. The Trickster Awakens!

**Sorry for the very long wait, folks! I had many distractions keeping me away from writing, mainly that my computer died on me after ten long years of good work. Now, I am working from my iPad with a Bluetooth keyboard, and it is not only not that easy, but not the same. Anyways, now I have a chance to try and post another story now, beginning with how the three OCs combine into the story of Persona 5!**

* * *

 **April 9**

"Haneru…Haneru, wake up!" The young otaku opened his eyes, hearing the sound of his mom's voice as she knocked on his door. He slowly woke up, and sat up on his bed. He looked at the room he had been in for more than a week. It was only slightly bigger than his last room, with cream-colored walls and ceiling, able to fit all of his stuff, with plenty of room to spare to even practice his dancing. There was even a ceiling fan, which was something he didn't have before. Everything was organized to his liking.

He stepped out of his room, yawning as he looked at their new apartment. It was on the fifth floor of an apartment building in the Iruma part of of Saitama prefecture. It was fancier than their previous resident, with the same colored walls as the ones in Haneru's room, bigger, with a nice living room and balcony for Mia to have plants at. The kitchen was just as nice, with better appliances than their old home. All the moving boxes were flattened and placed next to the door, now that everything was taken care of.

Mia was at the kitchen, readying cereal for Haneru. "We should get you ready to go to meet with the principal at Shujin Academy." she told him, "We'll stop somewhere to get some coffee afterwards, okay?"

"Just out of curiosity, why Shujin Academy?" Haneru asked, pouring the milk into his cereal, "There are other high schools in this part of town, right?"

"Unfortunately, there were no other schools you could attend in the vicinity, mostly due to not being able to fit in a transfer student into their schools at the moment." Mia stated, "Besides, it's not so bad. You will be close to Shibuya, after all."

"Right…" Haneru understood, realizing what she meant by that.

For those who wanted to know what had happened in the past several days since March 29, let's shortened it in a brief explanation. It took them full day to reach their destination and get their stuff moved into the house. Then the following days were consisting of unpacking and organizing everything in proper places, Mia getting use to the new hospital she was working at, which was bigger and busier than the last one. Haneru had to explore the area to see what there was to offer in the place. Fortunately, there was a street with a manga store and a music store nearby, though the Air Force Base was also close enough to hear jets fly overhead on an almost daily basis. Still, it wasn't too bad, as his apartment had something his old one didn't have; an open floor to do his dancing.

"Hurry up, Haneru. We won't have that much time to make it to the coffee shop if you are eating slow like that." Mia told him.

"Is this better?" He asked, and he scarfed down his eggs and bacon in under ten seconds. He grabbed his toast and jam, and shoved it in his mouth as he said in a muffled voice, "I'll get my clothes on!", and he raced back into his room.

Mia stood there, shaking her head at her son's demeanor. Despite the fact that he had conquered a Palace and changed Mr. Oda's heart, he still remained the same child she raised.

She looked out the sliding glass doors, thinking. There was another reason she wanted Haneru to got to Shujin Academy. After all, not too far from it is where she knew where her husband was at; In the Shibuya Underground Subway, in Mementos.

* * *

In Yongen-Jaya, in the little place called Cafe Leblanc, Guren had just finished downing some coffee and breakfast from her uncle. "So, any plans you have today?" Sojiro asked her, watching her take her dishes to the sink to wash.

"Well, I did get a notice that school is off today." Guren answered, "I plan to do a little music here, a little work at Ka-san's Shop, play with Futaba, all that jazz."

"Hopefully, you also know what's happening today, right?" Sojiro asked, his demeanor suddenly showing signs of disgruntlement.

Guren paused as she heard his tone. Finally, it occurred to her what he meant. "Oh, yeah! That person you're taking in for the year is arriving today, isn't he? The one that got arrested for injuring someone?"

"Yep. His name's Amamiya Ren. He'll be a second year in your school." Her uncle explained, "He'll be living upstairs in the attic."

"And just to clarify, the only reason you are doing this is because you were friends with this guy's parents?" Guren asked, "Well, can't get the reason, but it will give a good excuse to have someone clean up that mess up there. You end up hoarding almost anything and everything up there."

"And you have an excuse for NOT cleaning things up there?" Sojiro asked with a sassy tone.

"Oh, sure. I would rather jump into a minefield and see what I step on before going up there." Guren answered, "Besides, you know how busy my schedule is now and then."

"True. With school, working here and at the flower shop, you do have some spaces in between to take care of that mess. Though it makes me wonder what you do that gets you so tired whenever I see you."

Guren placed the clean dishes on the towel to dry before taking a pause, then answering, "I...like to go to the gym or the library. It helps to do extracurricular activities when I am not stuck in a prison." Sojiro looked pretty guilty at these words, and didn't pursue the topic any further.

For the past year, Guren had been making sure she didn't tell him or Futaba of the real second life she had; The life of being Phantom Thief Lioness. She was still using the Metaverse app, even to this day. At first, when she continued doing it for the sake of her deceased master and father figure, Daichi. However, as time went on, she found it as a bit of a stress reliever, as well as a way to stop criminals to place the blame on her whenever she was in a jam IRL. Thanks to the app, the number of times she had been in jail for the past year was reduced greatly. Compared to the past years, and according to Futaba's analysis, she was sent to jail 73% less frequently, almost three-fourth of the time out of the slammer. And it was thanks to the Metaverse app, allowing her to dive into people's Palaces, or going into a place she discovered in the underground subway in Shibuya.

While it felt relieving that she didn't have to spent too much time locked up, she did get suspicions from people when she ended up being around a person who suddenly confessed their crimes when they originally blamed it on her. She didn't want to grab too much attention for what she was really doing, so if the crime wasn't as bad as most others, she would regretfully let the villain slide and get sent to prison in their stead. She hated the idea, but it was all for the sake of keeping her other identity a secret.

That being said, this didn't cause people to be suspicious, but it did leave some pleased. Those close to her, like Sojiro and Makoto, found the fact that the reduced jail time she had could mean that the supposed 'curse' of being at the wrong place at the wrong time was starting to wear off. The fact that she had more people starting to back her up was a really good feeling for her. However, she wouldn't allow them to get close enough to know her secret, or other things that have happened in the Metaverse that were either good or bad.

Suddenly, the phone rang in the shop, getting Guren out of her thoughts. She looked as Sojiro picked up the phone and answered, "Hello? This is Cafe Leblanc. How may I help you?" His expression looked surprised from who was responding, then stated in a pleased demeanor, "Oh, hi there, Mia. I haven't heard from you in a long time... Oh really? You just moved closer? You'll be here in the afternoon? I see. Sure, my place is open today, especially to old friends. Absolutely! Thanks for letting me know. Glad to hear you. Goodbye." He put the phone down, a smile forming on his face.

"Someone you know?" Guren asked, "By the looks of it, the person must be a friend."

"Just someone I knew when I was younger. She and her husband were great friends of mine when they were in high school. They were also close friends of Futaba's mother."

"Really?" Guren asked, surprised. So the person that was arriving to their shop was a close friend of Futaba's mom. This made her quite curious of her.

"Well, better get the shop open." Sojiro spoke up.

"And I'll go and help out Yuuka this morning." Guren told him, running out the door, "I'll come back later to bring more customers in!"

"You'd better." Her uncle warned her, "Things get pretty dull without you here." Guren smiled and chuckled, and closed the door behind her.

As she wandered the streets of her town, she was greeted by many people who knew her well. She was really well-liked here, even though outside of this small town, she was looked upon differently. She still didn't trust most adults, and kept her distance from many classmates who only looked upon her for her criminal records, which did give her the title 'Shujin Jailbird' at school. She wasn't even that happy to have a new face living above Cafe Leblanc. Even if this person had a criminal record like she did, that wouldn't get her closer to the person. Right now, the only thing that mattered to her was keeping her life going as it is, and secretly punish the villains who were in this world.

* * *

It was a bit of a drive, but the Kurosawa family did make it to Shujin Academy. They got to meet and greet the principal, Mr. Kobayakama, along with his new home room teacher and Social Studies teacher, Mr. Ushimaru. With the documents already in, Haneru was given his new school uniform, and given a tour of the school, understanding where everything was at. He got to meet some of the staff, like Ms. Kawakami, his new Japanese Language teacher, Ms. Usami, his Math teacher, and Mr. Inui, his History teacher, which he secretly was worried about the most.

"Thank you for your time, sir." Mia thanked the principal and Ushimaru, and left with Haneru in tow. She turned to Haneru and asked, "So, how do you like it here?"

"Pretty nice place." He answered, "I wonder if I'll be able to make friends here?"

"You will." Mia assured him, "You will make great friends here, I'm sure of it."

"You'd better be careful about what friends you make here." said a voice from behind. They turned to see a tall, well-built man with black, unkempt hair and attire that clearly showed him to be a gym teacher.

"And you are?" Mia asked, curious about what he had just said.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Suguru Kamoshida. I'm going to be that young man's gym teacher." He indicated Haneru, "I'm also the captain of the volleyball team here."

"I see..." Mia understood, "And why would you give my son a warning like that? Surely he can choose who his friends are, right?"

"Of course he can. I'm just saying there are some students here that he should gain some forewarning about." Kamoshida explained, "For example, we have a second-year student named Ryuji Sakamoto, who is our school's punk. Got kicked off the track team after he smack-talked with me. Then there's our infamous 'Shujin Jailbird', Guren Sakura. She's a third-year student that's got a list of crimes under her belt that sent her to jail numerous times."

"Sakura, huh...?" Mia muttered, narrowing her eyes at what he had just said.

"Oh, yeah. We also are getting another transfer student with a criminal record, too. A second-year student named Ren Amamiya. Apparently, he caused serious damage to a random stranger. Gotta say, our school is filled with all sorts, and some just don't deserve to be here. But we take them in out of the goodness of our hearts."

"That's good to hear." Mia responded, "Sometimes, people like them need a place to take them in, when the world shuns them away. I hope you make sure to give these students a good environment to work in."

"We do our best." Kamoshida answered, looking to Haneru, "Anyways, I just want to give you a little forewarning, and welcome to Shujin Academy. When you get to my class, be sure to get ready to sweat! I will put you through the ringer in order to improve your skills."

"I'll do my best when I get there." He answered, and the family pair walked away from the smiling gym teacher.

As soon as they walked outside the gate, Haneru started, "That guy really seems to irk me to no ends. I don't know why."

"Same here. He pointed out a name there that was familiar to me." Mia muttered, "Sakura. That's my friend, Sojiro's, family name. He works at the cafe we're going to."

"Seriously?" Haneru asked as they reached their car, "What're the odds?"

"Anyways, don't let his words stop you from trying to make new friends." His mom told him, opening the driver-side door, "Take it from someone who was with a bunch of outcasts in her youth. Those people are sometimes misunderstood."

"I'll keep that in mind." Haneru answered, stepping into the passenger seat, closing the door behind. Once they were settled in, they drove off towards their next destination; Yongen-Jaya. Unaware they were about to encounter fated meetings.

* * *

At this time, in the early afternoon in Yongen-Jaya, a new face arrived there, having come up from the subway. He was a teen with wavy, unkempt hair, and gray eyes hidden underneath glasses that gave him the appearance of an ordinary boy. He wore the Shujin Academy blazer, and was carrying a bag that held a lot of his necessities. The rest of his stuff was already at the place he was gonna be living at for a year. This was Ren Amamiya.

"Let's see here." He muttered, looking at the map he was given, "The Sakura residence should be around here somewhere..." He looked about, not recognizing any signs. Without any idea of where he was going, he decided to just pick a random path forward.

( _'Insert: 'Beautiful Rain' by Rena Maeda_ )

As Ren walked in the dark streets of Yongen-Jaya, he couldn't help but hear music being played. "What is...? A piano?" he muttered, wondering where it was coming from.

His question didn't go unheard. "Are you new here?" a police officer asked. Ren turned to him and nodded. "It's no wonder. Here in this part of Yongen-Jaya, everyone knows Guren and her love for music."

"Guren?" The young man echoed, wondering who that was.

"The person playing the piano. The fact that she is means she's in Cafe Leblanc right now. Go in, if you want to hear more of it." With that, he went back on patrol.

Ren turned to the source the officer spoke of. While he was suppose to find the man who was gonna keep an eye on him here, he couldn't help but be mesmerized by the music. _'I hope listening to someone playing music isn't a bad excuse to arriving at his place late.'_ He told himself, and he wandered towards the cafe where the music was coming from.

As he stepped in, he noticed how packed the place was. There were many customers sitting in their seats, all listening peacefully to the song being played by a girl, who looked just as old as him, on her piano. Some were elders, some were high school students, there were also some adults and children in the shop, too. The latter group was either humming or nodding along to the song the teenager was playing. Sojiro was reading the newspaper as he sat at the counter, knowing that while his niece was playing, there wouldn't be a lot of orders at the moment.

Listening to the music and looking at the person playing it, Ren could see why they would all be there. He may not be an expert on music, but even he was mesmerized by the song being played.

As the song came to an end, everyone all applauded for Guren's performance. "Thank you very much, everyone," she thanked as she bowed. "I hope you all enjoyed yourselves, because that's the last song for today." Some of the kids let out voices of complaints when they heard that, in which she giggled. "Hey, I know I wanna play some more, but I have other things to take care of today. Thank you so much for listening." With that, most of the people all got up and left the cafe. About half of the amount left tips at the table or counters as they left.

As they left, Ren couldn't help but keep staring at Guren, who was putting away her keyboard upstairs in the attic. As she passed by the new guy, she took a quick glance at him, then continued on her way towards the stairs. She paused to look at the news report on the television which involved a bus that was driving down an opposing lane with citizens on it, then moved onward, disappearing as she escaped upstairs.

Sojiro placed down his newspaper as he noticed Ren at the door, then he realized who he was, and stated, "Oh, right. That's suppose to be today, huh? Almost forgot." He looked to some of the customers that still remained, which were basically all elderly folk, then back at Ren, who was still looking at the stairs that Guren walked up. "Wait at that stool, I'll be with you in a moment." the middle-aged man spoke up.

Ren sat down at the bar stool, watching as Sojiro was cleaning up, while bidding farewell to the customers that were leaving. The last pair walked up to Sojiro, with the wife saying, "Thank you again for the coffee and the performance, Sakura-san."

"You should be thanking my niece for that. It's what she does best in this cafe, after all," Sojiro told her.

The elderlies chuckled at the fact. "That's true," the male of the two agreed. "It's a good thing this cafe's in a back alley. A car's not likely to crash in this place."

"A what now?" Sojiro asked, confused.

"There's been a string of those rampage accidents, you know." The man informed him, "I just hope that none happen around here."

"It's none of my concern." Sojiro waved it off.

Another chuckle escaped their lips. "We'll come again," the female elderly said. With that, they left.

As soon as they left, Sojiro got up and started collecting the tips. "What a day," he sighed. To Ren, he then said, "So you're the one, huh? Amamiya Ren, right?"

It took a couple of seconds, wondering how he knew his name, then realized, "Yes, sir. You must be Sakura-san, correct?"

"That's right." Sojiro answered.

"Sorry." Ren apologized, "It's just, I didn't know you ran this place. I came here because of the music." Sojiro raised his eyebrows a bit, and Ren, feeling like he should at least be a little kinder, bowed as he finished, "I-It's nice to meet you, sir. Please, take care of me."

A bit surprised with the greeting, Sojiro stated, "I was wondering what kind of delinquent would show up, but it's you? I'm Sojiro Sakura. You'll be in my custody over the next year. The one who was playing the piano is my niece, Guren Sakura. One of my regulars know your parents and-." He stopped when he heard his niece's footsteps as she came down the stairs.

"Uncle!" Guren called, walking down the stairs. "I have to get going. I gotta catch up on some homework. Gotta take care of that before working at the flower shop tomorrow."

"Okay Guren. Oh, but before you go, I want to introduce you to the guy that's gonna be with us for the next year." Sojiro poked his thumb at Ren behind him, and Guren looked to him with a questionable look.

"So you're... Amamiya, right?" she started, approaching him to get a better look, "I'm Guren Sakura. Sojiro's my uncle."

"Nice to meet you, Sakura-san." Ren greeted her. He felt kinda awkward and nervous as she got pretty close to him, especially with how intense the look was. "The same eyes..." he heard her whisper.

"The same what?" Ren asked.

Guren backed off, shrugging off the question as she answered, "Never mind that. Call me Guren. I'm not interested in formalities like that. Well, you don't look like the part of a delinquent. But, then again, I'm one to talk."

Before Ren could ask about this, Sojiro cleared his throat as he stated, "You can get to know him some other time. I need to speak with him for a moment, and get him settled in here."

"Sure. Just don't give him a hard time." Guren stated, going behind the counter to grab her backpack.

"Also, are you sure you still want to work?" Sojiro asked. "You know I don't mind lending you some money from time to time. Besides, with the tips the customers leave, I question if you really do still need it." He handed Guren a portion of the said tips, in which she accepted.

"I can't always go to you, uncle. I have to look after myself after all."

"And that often gets you in unnecessary trouble." Her uncle pointed out.

"Hey, I don't go looking for trouble. Trouble looks for me." She walked past the two males, opening the door as she said, "G'night.", and she left.

Ren watched her leave, then Sojiro spoke up, "Well, come on. I'll show you your room." He was just walking over to the steps that led to the attic before adding, "Oh, and one more thing; If you try to do anything to my niece that I don't approve of, there will be consequences. You know what I mean, don't you?" Ren nodded in understanding, seeing how protective he was. "Good. Now follow me." Sojiro led him up to the attic, where he will be sleeping at.

Outside, Guren was starting to walk away from the cafe, going up the main street to her apartment. _'So that was Ren, huh?'_ She thought to herself, _'He didn't seem too bad, but I gotta make sure he understands that I am not such an easy girl to be friends with. I'll be cautious at first, but I'm sure uncle Sojiro will tame him. Still, those eyes... Why do they remind me of...'_

As Guren rounded the corner in the backstreets to her destination, she accidentally bumped shoulders with a sudden appearance of a person. "Oh, sorry!" she apologized, backing away from the person. The person turned out to be Haneru Kurosawa, wearing a black hoodie over a green shirt with artistic words that read 'Otaku boy' on it, black slacks, and his usual shoes. He still wore his armband and pendant. His mom, Mia, was with him, wearing a purple turtleneck shirt and blue jeans, black high heels, and her tan purse.

"It's all cool." Haneru answered, brushing his shoulder, then giving a grin, "Actually, you're the first person I bumped into this town. Perchance, this is a fated encounter?"

"Uh…what?" Guren asked, very confused.

"Forgive him." Mia apologized, pressing her hand on Haneru's head, shoving him into a bowing position, "My son has a bad time with talking normally with others. We were looking for a place called Café Leblanc. Do you know where it is?"

"Of course. It's just around this corner." Guren answered, pointing behind her, "My uncle owns the place."

"Oh, so you're Sojiro's niece?" Mia asked, "He is a good friend of mine. We go way back, especially with Wakaba."

"Wakaba?" Guren echoed, surprised, then thought, _'She knows Futaba's mom?'_

"I totally knew it! It's totally a fated encounter." Haneru smirked.

"It's just a coincidence, Haneru. This isn't an anime." Mia reminded him, embarrassed at her son's attitude, "Anyways, my name is Mia Kurosawa. This is my son, Haneru."

"I'm Guren. A pleasure to meet you." she greeted them, turning around and walking away, "Well, take care of yourself."

As the two parties separated, Haneru looked back at Guren. She did seem to be a nice girl, and a family member of the person they were gonna meet. This definitely felt like a fated encounter to him.

"Can you not act so ridiculous when we meet Sojiro, please?" Mia asked him.

"Why? And hide who I really am behind a mask?" Haneru replied, "Jeez, I already said I won't hide who I am anymore in this town. I'll stick to my guns, and be who I am."

"I know that's what you want to do, but all I am saying is tone it down a bit." Mia retorted, "You can be yourself without being an embarrassment. You already made too much of an impression on Guren."

"Alright, alright." Haneru sighed, "Still, I do think this was a fated encounter meeting her. I hope we see her again.

 _'Well, another encounter with a new face, and a weirder one at that.'_ Guren told herself, _'That boy was clearly an otaku, no doubt. As for his mother, she seemed pretty nice, and she is a friend of Sojiro and Futaba's mom. And why do I get this...weird vibe off of them. It feels familiar, almost like Daichi, but...'_ She shook her head of this idea, then continued, _'No, I shouldn't think about that now. Gotta go home and do some homework.'_

As she walked home, something else popped up in her head. She hoped that her uncle made sure not to have the new guy touch her keyboard. She didn't want any damage done to it.

* * *

In the attic of Leblanc, Sojiro showed Ren his room, which was messy as can be. He reminded the teenager of why he was there; He was on probation after getting arrested, and was expelled from his old high school, which led him to be transferred to Shujin Academy, and to be under the watchful eye of Sojiro for a whole year. Tomorrow, Ren was gonna go with him to the school in order to introduce himself to the staff.

"Oh, and one more thing..." he added, remembering one thing, and he grabbed Guren's keyboard and the box of equipment that came with it, "You are not allowed to touch this at any time. This is my niece, Guren's, keyboard. She loves to play it, and many of the folks in town love to hear it, too. If you so much as damage it, you will not just have my anger brought down on you, but my niece and the whole neighborhood's as well. Trust me when I say that Guren will be the worst of them all."

He brought the keyboard over, and opened up a cubby near the staircase. "There should be enough room in here to put it in." He muttered, sliding the keyboard and equipment into it, "I'll make sure Guren knows where it is."

Just then, he heard the ring chime down below, indicating someone had just entered the cafe. "Sounds like a customer." he muttered, and he turned to Ren, "Make sure you get yourself taken care of, here." And with that, he walked downstairs.

Ren took a good look around the room, seeing so much clutter, including the cardboard box containing his spare clothing and daily essentials. He knew he was gonna need a place to put them. However, with the place as it is, he knew he could not sleep comfortably just yet. First; he clean things up.

Downstairs, Sojiro had just reached the last few steps as he said, "Welcome, how may I help-." He stopped when he saw the Kurosawa family there, particularly Mia. His eyes widened in surprise.

"I did say I would come over, didn't I?" Mia told him, "Don't looks so surprised."

"Mia!" He greeted, a gentle smile forming on his face, "I didn't mean to look so startled. It's just been a long time since we last met. My goodness, you have blossomed into a fine, young woman."

"And you have kept yourself looking just as good-looking as usual." Mia answered, looking about, "Love this cafe. From when we last met, I never thought you would take the route of being a coffee connoisseur."

Sojiro chuckled as he stated, "Well, after some time, I came to realize that this easy life was better than what I was doing before. You kids, especially Wakaba, helped me see that eventually."

He then looked and saw Haneru walk around his mom, getting a better look of the place. "Oh, is this your son? I still remember the text Noriaki sent me back in the day."

"Yes, this is my son, Haneru." she introduced him.

"Hi, there, sir." The otaku boy greeted with a salute, "Haneru Kurosawa's the name. Otaku is my style of game."

"Eh, what?" Sojiro asked, confused.

"Sorry. I couldn't help myself." Haneru chuckled, "I'm actually interested in some coffee. Mom, is it okay for us to have some?"

"Of course." Mia answered, rolling her eyes at Haneru's demeanor once more, "I wouldn't mind seeing how well you make your coffee here, Sojiro. Two house blends, please."

"Comin' right up." Sojiro answered, going behind the counter to start preparing the coffee.

"By the way, we ended up bumping into your niece, Guren." Mia started as she and Haneru took seats at the bar.

"Oh?" Sojiro asked, "Was there any problems?"

"Other than my son being his usual otaku and idiotic self." The mother looked to her son with a slightly stern expression.

"Geez, it's not like she had any issues with it at the time." Haneru answered, "I still gotta wonder if I'll see her again?"

"Well, you can come back anytime to meet her." Sojiro told him, "Just be sure not to tick her off. She loves her music and this cafe, and either one being insulted will definitely set her off."

"Well, good thing I like all kinds of music...except rap and Screamo." Haneru stated, "Any kind of music that gets me angry is not something I like."

"And based on the smell of your coffee." Mia stated, taking a deep sniff, "I don't see any complaints of what's in store." Sojiro smiled at this compliment.

Once the coffee was done, he poured two cups of coffee, and served them to the pair. "Thank you. How much do I owe for this?" Mia asked.

"Oh, don't bother. This one's on the house, to a happy reunion." Sojiro beckoned the two to drink what he was serving, and the two did so.

Both took a light amount of cream, stirred it into the coffee, and took a sip. "Delicious!" Haneru exclaimed, "Now this is some amazing coffee!"

"The blend is very tasty, and how you prepared it brought all the flavor of the grounds in. You really did master the art of brewing coffee."

"Well, if you want, I can give you a few secrets, if you want." Sojiro suggested, "Course, if I give you that, I might not get you guys back here." Mia laughed at this comment.

Just then, the trio heard the sound of something like a plastic bag being dragged about upstairs. "What is that?" Haneru asked,

"Oh, that's...just some kid that I have to look after while he is on probation for the next year." Sojiro muttered, looking to Mia, "You know Amamiya-san back in the day, don't you?"

"I think so. Wasn't that Keiichi's last name?" Mia recalled, "He was in the same class as Noriaki and I."

"Well, I'm dealing with his problem child. His name is Ren Amamiya." The coffee-shop owner explained, "He tried to save this woman from this man, ended up injuring the man, and he sued the boy. Now, he's on probation."

"So he is in trouble because he was trying to do the right thing?" Haneru asked, "What kind of sick joke is that?!"

"Just proves that kids like you shouldn't interfere with adult stuff." Sojiro told him.

"I wouldn't be so sure. Haneru is old enough to make a decision." Mia stated, putting her coffee down as she looked at her reflection, "If you ask me, I'd say he was doing the exact same thing any one of us would've done in his stead. Noriaki would've especially done something."

"Which was why you guys were at constant heads with the authorities. Specifically Officer Oda." The name caused the mother and son's eyes to flash, "Though I read in the newspaper recently that he had been arrested for blackmailing and abusing his powers as a landlord."

"You wouldn't believe it, but we were there when it happened." Haneru stated, "He even tried blackmailing mom to stay there in Toyota, and wanted away with me out of spite for my father."

"You're kidding?!" Sojiro gasped, "What happened?"

"Here's another thing you wouldn't believe, but the Shadow Break group actually got to him." Mia stated with a smirk.

"You're kidding me? They're still around?!"

"He got a calling card from them, and a few days later, he confessed to all his crimes."

"Well, I'll be damn..." Sojiro muttered, amazed, "But, I didn't expect them to show up again. They caused the authorities back in the days the greatest amount of trouble."

"Well, I still supported their work." Mia pointed out, "Still, I think this was just a one-time show-up for them. I don't know if they'll come back again."

"You never know..." Haneru muttered, "I would like to see their work in action." Mia looked at him with one eye, knowing what he meant.

"Well, I was a supporter back in the day, but now they might be a bother. There's already enough trouble on the news..."

After a good long while of talking and catching up, and another cup of coffee later, the mother and son left the cafe, leaving Sojiro to go and see what Ren was doing in his attic.

"He seems pretty nice, albeit a bit grumpy here and there." Haneru stated seeing the sun nearly disappearing off in the horizon.

"He does have a lot on his plate, with taking care of Guren, Futaba, and now Keiichi Amamiya's son." Mia pointed out, "And this is all adding to the fact that he runs the cafe."

"And he also pointed out that the guy is gonna be going to school at Shujin, just like me." Haneru added, "I didn't get a good look at him today, but who knows. Maybe when we next meet at school."

"Maybe." she turned to Haneru as she added, "But listen, I know you are eager to go back to the Metaverse to stop another person from causing trouble, but you have to understand it is not that easy. You actually need a target to go back in there."

"Right, and the target can't be any person, right? They have to be villainous to the core, or at least like Oda."

"They don't HAVE to be a villain." Mia corrected him, "They have to have a strong and distorted desire to form a Palace."

"So in other words, we wait until someone like that comes our way." Haneru sighed, "Really hope it's like an anime, and something bad like that just supernaturally appears before us."

Mia sweat-dropped as she muttered, "Honestly, I think that happened to our team back in the day, and a lot, if I may add."

Up above, in one of the apartment rooms, Guren Sakura noticed the pair that she bumped into before wandering down the street. _'Well, they certainly took their time at Leblanc.'_ She noticed, _'I wonder if things are okay there.'_

She placed down her pen, having finished up her homework, and stretched her arms high as she took in a deep sigh. "Gods, that was exhausting! But at least I'm problem-free for tomorrow morning." She got away from her desk, and into the bathroom, "I wonder if I should go to the bathhouse before bed? Nah, I'll save that for tomorrow. Time to go to bed."

* * *

Back in the attic of Cafe Leblanc, Ren fell back into his bed. His room was much cleaner than how it was before. Course, he didn't finish cleaning up the place yet, but at least it was more comfortable. As he laid there, he thought back to the reason why he was in this mess in the first place. He still remembered the night when a drunk man was trying to force himself on a woman, despite her pleas. He stepped in to stop him, and the next thing he knew, he accidentally injured the man. Ren could still hear him growl, "Damn brat! I'll sue!" Next thing he knew, he was taken in by the police, placed on trial, and now he has a criminal record. Still, he couldn't let it go. It was something he had to do.

Just then, his phone chimed, and he pulled it out. He noticed something that surprised him. It was an app that was red and black, and it looked like an eye. But it wasn't the app that was strange.

Earlier today, he saw it there, and something strange happened. Time froze around him for a second, and he saw something encased in blue flames in the middle of the Shibuya Crossing street, and just as suddenly, it vanished. Not sure of what that was, Ren deleted the app.

Why was it back again? Didn't he delete it? It looked way too creepy. After a few seconds, he deleted the app again, and his arm limped to the side once more. He started to feel sleepy, and his eye lids shut almost immediately at this thought.

When he next woke, he was not in the room he fell asleep in. He was staring up at a blue-padded walls and ceiling, with metal chains dangling down close to him. The dripping of the water, landing in the toilet bowl next to him.

When he sat up, he noticed he didn't have any sheets on him. His clothing was different, and something metallic was restraining his wrists. He looked down, and noticed he was wearing a black and white-stripped prison attire. His hands were cuffed, with a couple feet of chain in between. How did things get like this? Why was he here in the first place? His head felt a little woozy, having a hard time contemplating what just happened.

As Ren pivoted his body till he sat properly on the side of the bed, wondering. He then heard a girlish chuckle, and turned to the bars of his apparent cell, which looked more fortified than the usual prison cells. Footsteps could be heard as two girls wearing blue prison warden outfits appeared. They looked barely twelve years old each, but they were clearly twins, as they had the same platinum-blonde hair and yellow eyes. Both had eyepatches on opposite eyes, with a 'V' embroiled on it. One styled her hair in buns, and carried an electric-shock baton. The other had her hair in a long braid, and carried a clipboard.

Ren took a good look at the twins, and was about to take a step forward, when he noticed something restraining one of his legs. He looked down, and saw a ball and chain holding him back, the cuff of it attached to his left ankle. Acknowledging this, he made his way over to the cell bars until he grasped ahold of them. The twins seemed to act like double doors as they shifted to one side, revealing what was behind them. In the middle of the room, which a spotlight was on, was a desk with the most unusual person he had ever seen. He looked like what would happen when a grinning old man had the appearance of a vulture. He barely had any white hair on his head, pointed, elf-like ears, a long, crooked nose, beady eyes, bushy eyebrows, and a grin that rivaled the Cheshire Cat from 'Alice in Wonderland'. He wore a black suit over his body, and wore white gloves over his spindly fingers.

He looked up at Ren, keeping his grin in place. Finally, he said, in a deep voice, "Trickster... Welcome to my Velvet Room."

Ren struggled at the bars, not sure what was going on. "So you've come to, Inmate." The bun-styled girl stated in a sassy tone.

"The you in reality is currently fast asleep." the braid-style girl followed up, her tone quieter than her sister, "You are only experiencing this as a dream.

"You're in the presence of our master. Stand up straight!" Barked the first girl. Ren looked to both of them, then at the man sitting at the desk from afar.

"Welcome. I am delighted to make your acquaintance." The old man greeted Ren, "This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those who are bound by a 'contract' may enter. I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well. I summoned you to speak of important matters. It involves your life as well."

Ren wasn't sure what to make of this, and he frankly didn't like the fact that he was locked in this cell. However, he didn't want to sound like a whiner when he was clearly in circumstances that was unknown, so he decided to ask, "What... important matters? Why am I in a cell?"

Igor ignored this, and looked about the room. "Still, this is a surprise..." He muttered, "The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear as such. You truly are a 'prisoner' of fate. In the near future, there is no mistake that ruin awaits you."

"P-Prisoner?" Ren echoed, "Ruin? Are you talking about?!"

"I speak of the end to everything." Igor answered, "However, there is a means to oppose such a fate. You must be 'rehabilitated'. Rehabilitated toward freedom. That is your only means to avoid ruin. Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?"

This was all over Ren's head. He had no idea what to make of any of this, but one thing was for certain. If he was to avoid this 'ruin' this long-nosed old man spoke of, he had to take this 'rehabilitation'. If not, he would end up on the path to ruin. He had hoped this was a dream of sorts, but it felt too real to be one. Meaning everything Igor spoke of might actually be true.

After mulling it over a few seconds, he answered, "Well, I'd rather avoid ruin."

"Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation." Igor answered, his smile broadening slightly. The twin wardens then turned and faced Ren, who looked down at them. "Ah, pardon me for not introducing the others." Igor realized, "To your right, Caroline. To your left, Justine. They serve as wardens here."

"Hmph! Try and struggle as hard as you like." the bun-haired girl named Caroline pompously stated.

"The duty of wardens is to protect inmates. We are also your collaborators." The braid-haired girl named Justine followed up, "...That is, if you remain obedient."

"I shall explain the roles of these two at another occasion." Igor finished, as the twin wardens turned away from Ren, "Now then, it seems the night is waning. It is almost time. Take your time to slowly come to understand this place. We will surely meet again, eventually..."

With a flick of his wrist, a bell suddenly rang all around, getting in Ren's ear like a whistle screaming in his face. "Time's up!" Caroline declared, "Now hurry up and go back to sleep!"

"But... Wait!" Ren started, grasping the bars tightly, having so many questions. But before he could ask any of them, his consciousness faded, and everything went black.

* * *

 **April 10**

His eyes snapped open. He sat up abruptly, and looked around. He was back in the attic of Café Leblanc. The morning sunlight was starting to peek out from over the buildings. He looked about for a second, then sat on the edge of the bed. "What was that dream?" He asked himself, "Ruin... Rehabilitation... What did it all mean?"

Just then, he heard Sojiro's voice from down below calling out, "Hey, you up? You gotta get dressed. We'll be leaving shortly to go to school."

Ren looked at the clock, realizing it was seven in the morning. He needed to get himself prepared ASAP.

* * *

Shortly after, as Sojiro's car drove off with Ren in it, Guren had just finished prepping herself for the day. "Let's see here. What's on the agenda today..." she muttered, looking at her notepad, "Oh, yeah. Sojiro was gonna be taking that new guy out to the school, so he was leaving me with Futaba." She looked at the digital clock, seeing the number go from 7:58 to 7:59. "She should be asleep at this time. I'll give her an hour more."

Bringing her backpack, Guren went to Leblanc, unlocking the door, and went to Ren's newly cleaned room. "Not bad. He really cleaned things up here." She muttered, looking at the state of the once messy attic, "Now, to get what I was looking for..."

She walked over to the cubby, and pulled out her keyboard and equipment, closing the cubby when everything was out. "Honestly, uncle. The least you could've done was brought it over to me so I could keep it in my place." She muttered to herself, "I know that guy isn't allowed to touch my stuff, but I can't leave it here in good conscience."

The only reason she kept her keyboard here was due to the weight of it and the distance. That's not to say she wasn't strong, because she was. This was particularly true thanks to the many times she had to fight in the Metaverse, which was a place she had to be physically strong at. So in retrospect, her argument of her bringing her keyboard didn't work as well, meaning the only thing that was an excuse was the time it took before she got her keyboard here and ready to play.

"Well, I could leave it at Sojiro's place." Guren suggested, "I mean, it's not like he doesn't have any free space there. I'll bring it there for the time being, and ask Sojiro later if it's okay." With an idea settled, she placed any of the cords and stuff she could place in her backpack, and carried the keyboard in both arms as she walked down the stairs.

After a couple minutes, Guren arrived at Sojiro's place, and unlocked the door into it. She placed her keyboard and backpack next to the door. She then walked to her cousin's door, which had more stickers, especially the recently added 'Keep Out' labels, and knocked on the door. "Futaba, it's me." She waited a few seconds, but no answer. This wasn't uncommon, as sometimes Futaba would end up on the computer, so distracted by the info she was digging up, she would be oblivious to her surroundings. After another wrap on the door and another call-in, Guren entered in.

The room was pretty messy, as Futaba rarely cleaned it. Guren tried to tell her off about this, but she never really followed through with this. Still, it wasn't at her computer where her cousin was at, but in her bed, still asleep.

"Seriously?" Guren sighed, "It's nine. She shouldn't be asleep like this." She bent down and shook her cousin as she said sweetly, "Futaba, if you don't wake up, you will fall victim to the 'Sakura Suplex'."

The name of what she intended to do was enough to make Futaba snap awake as she cried out, "No! Not the Sakura Suplex!" She paused for a second, then heard Guren chuckle. "Aw, man. I always hate you doing that." The computer nerd moaned.

"It always works, though." Guren answered, recalling when she actually did do the Suplex on her cousin, resulting her to be dazed by it, and for Sojiro to scold Guren for doing that.

"Sorry. I really haven't been sleeping well these past few months." Futaba moaned, rubbing her eyes and yawning.

"Yeah, I noticed that." She noticed, "Are you sure you're not going on your computer at nights like usual?"

"I've...been cutting back on it." Futaba answered, "But it's not really the thing that's keeping me up."

"Well then, what is it?"

"...Nothing." Futaba looked away from Guren, who knew from this reaction she was lying. Still, the last thing she wanted to do was pressure her cousin into giving her an answer. When the time was right, she would tell her.

"So, anyway, where Sojiro?" Futaba asked.

"Taking the new guy down to Shujin Academy to get registered. He's gonna be a student there."

"So, I guess that means you'll not be the only person there with a 'criminal record', eh?" Guren shot her a glare that made her realize she was too abrupt on her comment, which happened from time to time. "S-Still, I did get to look at the guy's background, along with what he did to be here, and something was pretty strange."

"Oh?" Guren asked as her cousin walked over to the computer, and pulled it out of sleep to reveal some info, "What did you find that was strange."

"Well, the crime was as I heard from Sojiro. Ren Amamiya, age 17, ended up arrested for physically attacking a person as he was arguing with a woman. She was resisting wanting to come with the guy, Amamiya stepped in to help, and he accidentally caused the man to injure his head badly. He sued him, the woman didn't defend Amamiya, and he got arrested."

"Well, it is pretty sucky. I mean, I can understand Amamiya's perspective, as I've been arrested too many times for trying to do the right thing. But how is that strange?"

"That isn't." Futaba pulled up the digital documents of the lawsuit, "Look on this. See something missing?"

Guren had seen these documents many times before, and she is still amazed that her cousin could pull them out on her computer so effortlessly. She examined it closely, and saw what was not there. "The accuser's name is not there." she noticed.

"Exactly. Documents like this ALWAYS should have the accuser, the accused, and even the victim's name. However, the name of the guy who got injured should be on both the accused and victim parts, and as you can see..."

"...He's not there." Guren finished, narrowing her eyes. This was no mistake or coincidence at all. The only explanation that could allow the person not to be labeled was if he had the ability to. However, that person would have to have close relationships to the police and/or the Court. Otherwise, there could be no way this was a legal document.

"Want me to look up on who the accuser is?" Futaba asked, "I'm pretty sure I can dig up some digital fingerprints that'll lead us straight to whoever it was."

"...No." Guren answered, "It's intriguing, but not absolutely necessary. I'll keep the thought on the back of my mind, just in case." She turned away from her cousin as she pondered. Contradicting to what she said, she found the whole situation very concerning. What kind of enemy did this new guy gain to be able to remove his name from legal documents? This made him very interesting.

Suddenly, Guren heard Futaba collapse, and she turned to see her cousin with a pillow on her computer keyboard, fast asleep once more. "Like a drop of a hat..." she muttered, sweat-dropping at the sudden sleepiness, "Well, I might as well make her coffee so she can be awake for the day." She walked out of Futaba's room, going to make her some coffee, thinking maybe a stronger cup would do in her case.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Shibuya, it was noon, and Haneru was leaving the underground mall, having obtained the last of the things he needed to refill for school. "New pencils, notebooks, all that jazz." He muttered, looking at the bags he carried, "Guess I have a little more time before I need to go home again. It want to go to the streets to see what they have to offer."

He walked to the central street of Shibuya, seeing all the places they had to offer. He was intrigued by what was there, such as all sorts of great shops, a diner, a fast food place, and even walking around the back of an alley to find something that looked like a model gun store.

As he walked around, he discovered an arcade, and decided to go in it. "I got a few coins to play a game or two." He muttered, seeing what the place had to offer. When he was inside, he found the place packed. Well, it was a Sunday, so there was no school, meaning there was a lot of students here. He found nothing of total interest in there for a while, but that changed at a certain point.

 _(Insert 'Ignite' by Eir Aoi, last minute, fourteen seconds of the song)_

He suddenly heard the sound of a cheering crowd, and looked to see a bunch of people gathered around, watching a Dance Dance Revolution game in progress, only it had four players going on it. Three of them were pretty decent, but one of them was dominating the field. He had brown hair, with only a couple bangs coming out from underneath his backwards cap. He wore a loose red hoodie, a black shirt that said 'Beat', tan slacks, and red and black shoes that were clearly designed for street dancing.

Haneru approached the scene, going through the crowd to get up close to see the dance about to come to a close. The song ended, and the best dancer struck a pose, pointing his finger to the heavens as the screen flashed the word 'WINNER'. "And that's how you do it!" He shouted, while the other dancers ended up walking offstage, "Come on. I'm good for another round or two. Who wants to come at 'The Beat'?!"

"Let me try!" "Yeah, I wanna do it!" a boy and a girl both shouted, getting on stage.

"A couple more for me to outclass." The Beat stated with a confident grin, "Anyone else?!"

Haneru looked around, with people pretty hesitant. He, himself, was a bit on the worried side, but he was confident in his dancing skills. He had practice for the past couple years since he saw the anime that inspired him. Plus, he did say he wanted to be true to himself, and not to hide behind a mask, so why not follow through with that?

"I'll do it." Haneru declared, walking up and getting onto the stage next to the guy who called himself 'The Beat'.

He looked at the new kid with his beady eyes, then grinned as he asked, "You look pretty new to this. Know how to play the game?"

"Sure. I've tried plenty of times in the past." he answered, placing his bags down in a spot between the stage and screen, "Might as well see if I can do it now."

The Beat chuckled as he stated, "Alright, folks! Pick the song you want to dance to! Doesn't matter which one it is, though, since I will win!"

Haneru narrowed his eyes at him, wanting to prove him wrong. Using the pads at his feet, he shuffled through the list of songs to choose from. Finally, he found a song that he knew by heart, and placed it in. The other three did the same.

"And now, lets randomize, and see who's song comes out on top!" The Beat declared, and the songs circulated around on all of the screens. Haneru inhaled and exhaled, getting into the zone of dance he always placed himself in at this point. This was the moment his otaku side stepped into play. The spinning of the music slowed down and came to a halt, and Haneru smirked. It was his song.

"Dude, that's a tricky song to dance to!" "This kid looks like a novice. Why would he choose that?!" There were speculations as to why Haneru chose this song, but little did they know they were about to find out why.

 _(Insert 'pop that!' By lol)_

As soon as the music started, The Beat got into a stance, preparing to dance. The other opponents also prepared himself. Haneru closed his eyes, feeling the beat, recalling the rhythm, and drove them into his body and soul. His eyes flashed opened as the arrows started to scroll up the screen quickly, and the dance-off began.

The stage began, and Haneru let his eyes see the arrows, and his feet react to them. It started with him only getting 'Goods' or 'Greats', while The Beat was going into the 'Great/Excellent' category. However, after the first few verses, Haneru got use to the buttons and the dance, and he began going into the same category as his rival. The Beat took quick glances at him, and saw that Haneru was catching up to him, so he tried stepping up, himself.

At the halfway point, the other two competitors just gave up, realizing they could not best the two on center stage, while the crowd was cheering for the both of them. One person in the back took a quick glance; A punk-looking kid with blonde hair. He turned away as he wasn't interested in the game.

Haneru and The Beat were neck and neck on the dance stage, as their skills were able to rival each other. Haneru made sure not to think of anything else but the music and where his feet were going to match the arrows, which got trickier as the song went on. The insanity of the fact he was actually putting the head dancer there through the ringer was something The Beat and the audience couldn't believe.

When the song ended, the flashing sign that said 'Winner'...ended up on The Beat's screen, but only because he was a few points ahead of Haneru. The audience cheered at the amazing dance-off that came into fruition. Haneru doubled over and started to pant in exhaustion. He became so enveloped in the music, he forgot about his stamina.

"Damn, you made me pull out all the tricks to win!" The Beat stated, reaching his hand down to Haneru, "Gotta say, bro: You got mad skills! Got a name to go with that dancing skills?"

"H...Haneru Kurosawa." He panted, taking his rival's hand and pulling himself up.

"Hey, I can see someone who has a gift in dance, and you got it." The Beat told him, "I really didn't think you were that good at first, but you left me barely a scrape away from losing. Do you do dance?"

"Just...a bit of street dancing. Parkour and such."

"Parkour, huh? Well, you do have the name 'Haneru' for a reason." He stated, grinning. He turned to the audience as he declared, "One more round of applause for my opponent, 'Parkour' Haneru!" The audience cheered for Haneru as his hand was raised into the air by his opponent, and he looked really happy at this point.

Later on, outside the arcade, The Beat wrote something down on a piece of paper, and gave it to Haneru. "Listen, man. You got a gift, and I bet the dance team I'm in would be happy to help you develop it further. Drop by this place in the afternoon. It's where we practice."

"Sounds like fun." Haneru answered, "Thanks again."

"Hey, thanks for the intense dance battle!" The Beat answered, walking off, "Keep it real!" Haneru waved him off, and started walking back to the train station.

As he rested on the train, his phone rang, and he saw it was his mom. "Hey there." He greeted her, "You off work?"

"Just on my way home, now." She answered, "I hope you got all your school supplies you need for tomorrow."

"All with me." Haneru answered, looking at the bags, "But man, did I have an eventful time at the arcade today."

"Oh, no. Please tell me you didn't spend too much there." Mia prayed, "You do know you need to find a job."

"Don't worry! It's not a bad thing!" Haneru assured her, "But...well, I think I am starting to make my mark in this place already..."

* * *

That evening, Guren was playing a little music at her uncle's place, entertaining Futaba and cleaning things here and there in the house. After she was done, she looked up, and saw how late it was. "Sojiro should be back ages ago.." She muttered, "What's taking so long?"

She went to the kitchen, seeing the stew she had made for her and her family was done in the pot, and turned the burner off. Using the ladle, she placed equal proportions in three bowls. When she was done, she pulled out her phone, and dialed her uncle up. After a few rings, she got an answer.

"Hey, what's up?" Sojiro asked.

"What's up? You were gone all day. I have food ready for you."

"Don't worry. I'll be there in no time." Sojiro assured her.

"Well, you better home home with an explanation to Futaba and I as to why you were gone for so long." Guren scolded him.

Sojiro chuckled, then answered, "Uh-huh. I'll see you soon." And he hung up.

On that note, she hung up on him, sighing. "Sojiro does have a good reason." She heard Futaba, and she walked into the kitchen, "Look up on your phone. The news is just screaming about what happened at the subway today."

Guren pulled out her smartphone, pulling up the news reports. She wasn't kidding when she described how big it was. There was an accident involving a train crash in the subway, resulting in over seventy victims involved. While it was startling, she wasn't totally surprised. For the longest of time, she had seen so many incidents, and many of them involved a sort of psychotic breakdown of sorts. This did draw concern, especially when she now held the ability to go into the Metaverse. Was there some sort of connection between it and these incidents?

Just then, the door in the front opened, and they heard Sojiro call out, "Hey, I'm back."

"And speaking of the devil!" Futaba stated, turning as Sojiro walked in, his expression somewhat irritated.

"Sorry it got so late. Traffic was crazy."

"I'm guessing it's because of this?" Guren asked, raising her phone to reveal the news report.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. The subway incident." he answered, "Well, thanks to that, I couldn't open my shop all day today."

"Well, I guess that means after school, I'd better come home and draw people in!" Guren declared, going over to pull out the side dishes she made beforehand.

"Oh, wait." Sojiro started, pulling out his phone, "Better tell Ren that he needs to flip over the sign on the door from now on. I don't have his phone number yet, so I'd better call the shop."

"Typical. A lady killer doesn't need male phone numbers on his phone." Guren sassed. Sojiro grumbled, acknowledging the sassy comment, but not replying to it.

"Come on. Let's eat before the food gets cold." Futaba nodded in agreement, and took her bowl of stew and side dish, and walked over to the dining table.

* * *

In Saitama, Mia and Haneru had just finished their meal when Mia stated, "So someone recruited you to be a part of their dance team?"

"Maybe. It sounded more like he wanted me to practice first, to see if I can actually dance well." Haneru answered, taking his and his mom's plates to the dishes, "Either way, I am pretty excited."

"Well, don't get stuck in the wrong crowd." Mia warned him, standing up and stretching, "Just because you think they have good intentions doesn't always mean they work out. If they don't feel right, back out before you get involved in some bad influences."

"You mean besides stealing Treasures and changing people's hearts, right?" Haneru asked in a smug manner.

"Yes...besides that." Haneru chuckled at her mom's response. "Anyways, you should get some sleep. You have to get up early from now on to get to the train to school on time."

"Roger." He answered, scrubbing the dishes and silverware in the sink, before placing them in the drying rack next to it. When he was done, he walked back into his room. Mia sighed as she was exhausted from the day she had at work. She liked living here, and it was affordable, but that didn't make the time feel longer than it should as her job was an hour's distance away by car, and it was much longer thanks to the traffic.

She looked at her smartphone, seeing the news report again. "Another mental shutdown case. Who is causing all of these?" She wondered.

In Haneru's room, he used his phone to look up any news on latest anime and video games, saw none, and flumped his hand to one side. He did want to be a part of this dance team, but he really wanted to go on another venture into the Metaverse once more. He wanted to find another cruel individual who's heart needed to change, and do something about it. The last experience with Oda was painful, but fun. _'Who knows? Maybe tomorrow, I'll find someone who needs to change their heart.'_ He told himself, as he fell asleep.

What either party was unaware of was that starting tomorrow, a new awakening was about to take place.

* * *

 **April 11**

It was a cloudy morning when Guren woke up. Before she went to bed last night, Sojiro had a request to her; bring Ren to school, and have him learn of the way to get there. She brought her umbrella as she waited outside of Café Leblanc, until Ren decided to appear. "Sojiro told me I was your guide to our school." She told him, "Better not slow us down. I don't like being late for school." Course, she mentally told herself that other times she missed school entirely due to being in prison.

They made their way to the Yongen-Jaya subway station, and got in. They could tell some people were trepidatious due to the accident yesterday, making some people choose not to take the subway. Parts of the system were closed, but nothing to interfere with the pair's path to the school.

"So, I guess our only encounter in the past couple days was the day you came here, huh?" She asked him. Ren nodded in response.

"Well, just to let you know, I'm not one to hang out with anyone, okay?" Guren warned him, "I have a life, you know. And a family to be with. I work at a flower shop, I have a friend who helps me with homework, and I have extracurricular activities I take part in. Like it or not, you won't be having me around."

"What are your activities?" Ren asked her. He wanted to at least get to know her, as she is Sojiro's niece, and they were living close to one another.

"Gym, library, and jail time." the last one caught Ren off guard, and Guren added, "Oh, yeah. I guess you don't know. I have been to jail plenty of times, but all because I was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Kind of like what you did to end up in my uncle's place. I heard all about it."

Ren looked at her for a moment, and she caught his eye, and gave him a glare. "That doesn't mean we should be chums because we both have criminal records on our person, and we're innocent victims to crimes where another party should be the ones behind bars. The world is tough that way, I know it more than anyone else. If you want to gain my respect and care for you, earn it. Don't let your tongue do the work, either. Actions speak louder than words. You understand?"

"Y-Yes, Sakura-san." Ren answered, slightly scared of her.

"I told you before, call me Guren. At least get that right!"

"Sorry, Guren-san." Ren apologized, causing the girl to sigh at his demeanor. Her stern personality was completely opposite to his slightly nervous one at this point.

They got off at the Shibuya subway station, and Guren led him towards the next station where to transfer next station at the Ginza Lane Gate. They got in, passing through a crowd of people to find a comfortable seat. They were unaware that there was another person a seat away from them. It was Haneru, who had been in the same seat for a while, since he transferred from a different train a good fifteen minutes ago. He didn't notice them in the chair next to him, but was looking down, playing Treasure Cruise on his smartphone.

His eye twitched when he did a special eleven character draw, growling, "She's suppose to get a rate increase to obtain her at this point. How is it that I can't get her?!" He sighed as he slumped his head. "I swear, video games know what you want, and you get it less."

After a while, the train stopped at Aoyama-Itchome station, and the Shujin students, both old and new, got off. When they got into the daylight, they found the scenery to be that of a rainy one.

"Good thing I got my umbrella." Guren stated, pulling out her said utensil, "Did you bring yours?" Ren shook his head.

Aways from them, Haneru dug in his backpack, pulling out his umbrella, and opened it up. "Right. Time to get moving!" He tilted the umbrella head, and started making a mad dash to the school. Guren and Ren took a glance at them, then at the path ahead.

"Look, I'm not gonna share my umbrella with you here." Guren told him, "People might get the wrong idea. See if you can't wait for things to let up before arriving, but if time runs short, make a break for the school, okay?" Ren nodded in understanding. "Right. See ya." She walked off, her umbrella protecting her as she left.

Ren walked over to one of the store covers, shaking off the rain that got in his hair. The sky didn't look like the rain would end soon, but he did think of Guren's advice. He took out his smartphone, pulling out the navigation app to see where he needed to go from here. After looking at it for a moment, he noticed another app button appear on the map screen. It was the same red and black, eye-looking app he deleted three times already. It appeared last night, and he swore he deleted it before rebooting his phone, just to be safe. Yet, even that didn't stop this weird app from reappearing once more on his phone.

He sighed as he looked at the app, and was about to delete it again when someone wearing a hoodie joined him underneath the canopy. Looking at the figure, he could see that this person was a girl, and someone going to the same school as him. She brushed off the rain on her hoodie, and then, took the hoodie off, revealing a very pretty face. She had wavy, platinum-blonde hair, tied in bushy twin-tails. Her eyes were that of a bright blue.

As she brushed off the rain, she couldn't help but notice Ren looking at her. She noticed something in his hair. "There's..." she started, and she reached up and grabbed a sakura petal that got stuck in his hair. "I hate the rain..." she sighed, looking at the sky, "It scatters the pretty blossoms everywhere."

Just then, they heard a honk, and a silver car stopped at the curb near them. The window on the passenger side scrolled down, revealing the PE teacher Haneru met the other day, Kamoshida. "Good morning." He greeted the girl, "You want me to give you a ride to school? You're gonna be late."

"Um, sure. Thank you." the girl answered, heading to the passenger side of the car.

Kamoshida then looked to Ren and asked, "Do you need a lift, too?"

Ren was slightly taken aback, then answered, "Uh, no. Thank you." Kamoshida nodded in understanding as the girl opened the car door and got in. She closed the door as the PE teacher closed the window. However, as it closed, Ren noticed the girl's expression looked a bit crestfallen. It was as if she really didn't want to be picked up by this guy. The car drove off, leaving Ren momentarily alone.

Suddenly, there was a pattering of footsteps, and there was another encounter. It was the same blonde boy that noticed Haneru dancing in the arcade. He, too wore a Shujin Academy shirt, but it was open, revealing his undershirt.

He slowed to a stop, growling, "Dammit... Screw that pervy teacher."

"Pervy teacher?" Ren echoed. Unbeknownst to him, the eerie app heard what he had said, and it started to activate on him.

The vulgar boy turned to Ren, narrowing his eyes as he asked, "What do you want? You plannin' on rattin' me out to Kamoshida?"

"Kamoshida?" Ren echoed, confused. His app heard the name, and the word 'HIT' suddenly appeared.

"Huh? In that car just now. It was Kamoshida." The boy explained, "He does whatever the hell he wants. Who does he think he is-the king of the castle? Don't you agree?"

"The king of the castle?" Ren echoed. Again, his phone heard the word 'castle', and another 'HIT' appeared.

"N-No, I mean..." the boy started, then he realized something, "...Wait. You don't know Kamoshida? Are you for real? You are from Shujin, right?"

"You go to Shujin Academy, too?" Ren asked. His phone heard 'Shujin Academy', and another 'HIT' appeared.

"What...? No other high school's got a uniform like this." The boy looked at the button that had the number 2 on it. "A second-year, huh... We're the same grade then. Never seen you before, though." He paused to think about it for a second, then he realized, "Oh, are you the new transfer student? Then no wonder you don't know him. This rain ain't too bad. We better hurry up, or we'll be late."

Just as the two were starting to move, the eerie app suddenly had the words, "BEGINNING NAVIGATION." And the area around suddenly felt weird. Both boys felt like their heads became light for some reason. They both looked around for a moment, then the vulgar boy moaned, "Man... I wanna go home..." He led Ren as they made their way through an alley, which would be a shortcut to the school, unaware of what just happened.

* * *

At the front gate of the school, Haneru raced up the steps, bolted into the door, and closed his umbrella. Sad to say, he didn't stay as dry as he wanted to be. "Man, when am I gonna learn; no running in the rain." He muttered, shaking the rain from his umbrella before working on his blazer, "Guess I'd better go to the teacher's office. Gotta know which class I'm partaking in.

He walked towards the destination he thought was the teacher's office, unaware he was passing by Makoto Nijima. Unlike last year, Makoto now held the role of Student Council President. Her demeanor showed her more as a serious figure, which was only a facade she carried at school. She noticed Haneru passing by her, not recognizing the boy. She then reached the entrance, where she noticed Guren a minute behind Haneru, shaking her umbrella before closing it.

"Seems like you got caught up in the rain." Makoto noticed, getting her BFF's attention.

"Hey, class prez. Sorry I haven't been calling you." Guren apologized, "Figured you were too busy to hang out with me."

Makoto really felt guilty. This was true, as with her duties as Student Council President, plus making sure she did her homework thoroughly, she had less time to talk to Guren, let alone hang out with her. "I'm...pretty sure I'll be caught up later this afternoon." She stated, "Wanna go somewhere afterwards?"

Guren paused for a second, then smiled and nodded in agreement. "Think about where to go, and I'll take you there." She told her. As Guren finally started walking to class, she added, "By the way, I brought the second-year transfer student from my place. Left him just outside the station when it was raining."

"Didn't you allow him to join with you?" Makoto asked.

"What does this look like? A lovers umbrella?" Guren raised her umbrella.

"Right... I kinda see your point." Makoto understood, "See you in class." Guren nodded in agreement, and walked away.

As Makoto watched her leave, she overheard a couple of the students. "Is she still friends with the Shujin Jailbird? She can't be serious?"

"Well, she is sucking up to every teacher and the principal since coming here. You'd think she's trying to help her go straight?"

"What a shame. All those brains and connections, and she can't pick her friends right."

Makoto gave a harsh glare at the people talking about her, and they hurried to their class. She then sighed. Even as the Student Council President, she couldn't stop the dislike around Guren, nor stop the harsh words involving their friendship.

* * *

As for Ren and the vulgar boy, they made their way to the school, alright. However, as soon as the boy reached it, he stopped as he gasped, "Wha...?!" Ren caught up to him, and saw the reason for his startled behavior. This was not the school he was at yesterday. Instead, what laid before him was unmistakably a castle, larger than the school.

For a moment, the two didn't know what to think of what they saw. They looked back at the alleyway, and the blonde boy muttered, "We didn't...come the wrong way, though... Yeah, this should be right. It has the Shujin Academy sign right there. What's goin' on here...?"

"I guess we'll just have to go and ask." Ren answered. With an idea set, they walked over the drawbridge, and into the supposed school. What the two were unaware of was that they were in the Metaverse, and in a certain person's Palace, at this very moment.

* * *

Meanwhile, Haneru was standing outside the third-year classroom where he waited patiently. Mr. Ushimaru gave him forewarning about what to do when introducing himself to the class. Inside the students were all in their seats. Makoto and Guren, of course, were sitting close to one another like last year.

"Makoto, if you would mind starting us off with the morning greeting." Mr. Ushimaru asked.

Makoto stood up and said, "Stand." Everyone stood up. "Bow." The students bowed to the teacher, who bowed back. "Be seated."

As soon as everyone was seated again, the teacher spoke up, "Alright class. Today, we have a new transfer student who will be joining us." The classroom started to buzz, surprised at the news of the new transfer student transferring to their class. They heard of the second-year transfer student so much, they almost forgot there were two of them transferring to their school today. Makoto and Guren both sat in their seats, waiting, but eavesdropping on the conversations around.

"I heard he came from Toyota. I wonder what he's like."

"Do you think he has an Osaka accent?"

"Man, first that transfer student in second year, and now this? Let's hope this one doesn't have a criminal record."

"I hope so, too. This person can't be any worse than Sakura, right?"

That last one both girls heard made Makoto narrow her eyes sharply, but she couldn't speak up for her, even though she wanted to. Guren just let it slide. It wasn't like she wasn't use to the reputation anyway.

The teacher turned to the door and said, "Come on in." The door slid open, and Haneru walked in. The students continued to mutter at him, seeing that while he was in his school uniform, he still wore his silver pendant and armband. Guren, in particular, was surprised. _'That's the boy I bumped into outside my uncle's café.'_ She recalled.

"Class, I would like to introduce you to Haneru Kurosawa." Mr. Ushimaru introduced him, "He will be joining our class today. Kurosawa, would you like to write your name down and introduce yourself?"

"Yes, sir." Haneru answered, turning to the chalkboard, and writing down his name in proper Japanese.

"Wonder what this guy's story is like?" Guren pondered, "His personality was pretty odd, but it's not like he's anything special.."

As soon as he was done, Haneru turned to the group. There were so many new face he didn't know, and he was a bit nervous to speak to all of them. I mean, talking normally to a group was a bit on the harder side for him. However, he had to speak up, otherwise, he would regret not making a good first impression. He breathed in, than breathed out deeply, trying to calm his heart. Then he started to speak.

"I'm Haneru Kurosawa. I came from Toyota after my mother got a job at the Shibuya General Hospital as a nurse." He stopped, wondering what to say next. He knew the class would eventually find out what kind of a person he was. And after unlocking his Persona, he decided to lay it all out on the battlefield, and hoped that it would turn out alright.

He grinned as he poked a thumb at his chest and declared, "Also, I am a total otaku!" The students murmured a bit at this self proclamation at being an otaku. "Well, there goes the 'not so special' theory." Guren told herself in slight bemusement.

"I am not good at holding a long conversation on normal stuff, which is ironic since I am a Gemini. But if you are talking about anime or video games I know, I can speak easily about that." Haneru continued, "I am good at most subjects, except History. I can kinda do parkour street dance, like an anime character that has the same name as me. I don't have really any goals in my future, but I will find out what it is, one episode at a time, and…"

He suddenly realized he was going into otaku mode, and realized that some of the students, and even the teacher, were perplexed at his rambling. Haneru decided to clear his throat and end, "Well, you get the gist of me. I hope I can be friends with you guys." He bowed to the crowd, signaling the end of his introduction.

The classroom weakly clapped at him, while some muttered on what a strange guy he was. "Well, that was the most enthusiastic introduction I saw." Makoto thought to herself, "Let's hope he's not a distraction to the class."

"He is definitely weird, but not a bad person." Guren noticed, watching Haneru grin embarrassingly at the people clapping for him, "At least I know he's entertaining. And yet…" She narrowed her eyes as she looked at the self-proclaimed otaku boy, "…What is this weird feeling? A vibe that almost feels like myself?"

"Thank you for that…lively introduction." Mr. Ushimaru spoke with a slight sweat-dropped expression, "Now, as for a seat…" He looked about the room and noticed, "Ah, there's a seat to the right of Nijima. Why don't you sit there?"

Haneru nodded in understanding, then walked himself over there, all the while thinking, "Man, did I kinda go overboard. Oh well, at least I was honest."

He sat in his seat and placed his books on his table, looking at the girl with short brown hair with French-braid styled headband, and surprisingly red eyes. "Red eyes?" he muttered out loud.

Makoto looked to him, hearing what he said. "Oh, uh…sorry." he apologized, "I just…I thought having red eyes was impossible, or at least an extreme rarity."

"It is." Makoto answered simply, before looking back at the teacher as he started to speak.

Haneru sweat-dropped at the small talk, already telling this girl was more of a studier than a conversationalist, at least. "Well, at least we have something in common." he told himself, before pulling out a book to write on as the teacher started teaching them Social Studies. Guren looked to the boy sitting next to her best friend, before deciding to return to her studies.

Hours later, lunchtime arrived, and everyone went out and about to wherever they wanted to eat at. Guren stood up and was going to the courtyard when he heard a, "Hey, it's you!" She turned to see Haneru catch up with her.

"What do you want?" she asked with a scoff.

"Geez, are you always this nice?" Haneru asked, "I just remember bumping into you a couple days ago. Who knew that we would end up in the same class, right? Course, it was fate, just as I called it."

"It's not fate, but a coincidence." Guren retorted, "You always this animated?"

Haneru ignored this, then followed up with, "So, someone told me that you were known as the 'Shujin Jailbird' here? What is that about?"

"Oh? And who told you that?"

"The PE teacher. I think his name was-."

"Kamoshida." Guren growled, "Of course it's him! That self-serving, pervert cares nothing more than to please himself. And if he finds you unworthy to be here, he will grind you down until you are shunned by every other student in the school."

"Now, now, Sakura. You know better than to spread false rumors like that." The pair turned to see Kamoshida approaching the pair, "You always were skating on thin ice. It's a miracle you haven't been kicked out with your a reputation like yours."

"Save it!" Guren spat.

Kamoshida ignored this and turned to Haneru, greeting him with a, "We meet again, Kurosawa. Didn't I tell you who to not make friends with?"

"And my mom told you I can make whatever friends I want." Haneru retorted, "Besides, it's not like she sees me as a friend, anyway. Right?"

"That's right. He's in the same class with me." Guren retorted, "If you ask me, he's too much of an otaku for me to like."

"See? She dislikes me." Haneru stated bluntly.

Kamoshida huffed at Haneru's demeanor, and walked away. As soon as he left, Haneru muttered, "Why do I get the feeling I shouldn't have smack-talked like that?"

"He deserves it." Guren scoffed, "Almost all of the students and school staff prefer to be on his good side because of his reputation."

"What reputation is that? I certainly can't think of anything positive."

"Well, apart from being the coach of the school volleyball team, he was a gold medalist in the Olympics." Guren explained, "With that kind of status, it's no doubt he end up the pompous windbag he is right now. And no one likes to argue with him, or else they'll feel his wrath."

"Well, you certainly don't mind getting into a scuffle with him." Haneru pointed out.

"I already have a bad rep here. What do I care if I pick one more fight with someone?" Haneru looked at her for a moment, then looked away. She acted tough, but only because the people around here see here as a nuisance. He kinda felt bad for her and what she had to go through.

"Excuse me, Sakura." The two noticed Ms. Kawakami approach the pair, "Have you seen Amamiya-san? He hasn't arrived to school yet."

This bit of news startled Guren as she exclaimed, "Are you serious? But I left him outside the Aoyama-Itchome station. Getting here should've been no problem, even for a fool!"

"Well, all I know is that he and Sakamoto are both not here." Kawakami answered, "I know Sakamoto's not the best influence for any of the students here. 'Sigh' I really hope he is not responsible for his absence."

Guren looked down, puzzled. She never took Ren as a fool, and he is suppose to be on his best behavior while under her uncle's influence, and yet he hadn't even arrived to school yet. What was going on?

Haneru looked to her, and decided that maybe he should have lunch on his own. He walked away from the scene, leaving Guren to watch him go. _'I wonder what's the story behind this Sakamoto and Amamiya?'_ Haneru questioned in his mind.

He looked to see Kamoshida laughing with a couple of his students, although the latter seem to be forcing their laughter. _'I really can't stand that guy.'_ Haneru finished, _'Makes me wonder if this guy has a Palace...'_

* * *

At this point, inside the Metaverse, within the prison of the castle, there existed the Shadow version of Kamoshida, who wore a gold crown, a heart-patterned cape, and pink underwear. He was standing around iron soldiers, all of which had swords and shield at hand. He was glaring down at the boy named Sakamoto, who had just taken a beating by Kamoshida. Ren was backed into the wall by one of the knights, stricken with fear by what he was witnessing.

Shadow Kamoshida spat on Sakamoto, stating, "...Hmph. Where'd your energy from earlier go? A peasant like you isn't worth beating. I'll have you killed right now."

"Stop it!" Ren called out, desperate to follow through with this.

Kamoshida turned to him, glaring with his glowing, yellow eyes. "What...? Don't you dare tell me you don't know who I am." He approached Ren, who stood firm, glaring back at him. "That look in your eyes irritates me!" Kamoshida delivered a kick to Ren's abdomen, sending him crashing into the wall.

"Hold him there..." Kamoshida ordered, "After the peasant, it's his turn to die. Ren tried to race to Sakamoto, but was pinned to the wall by two soldiers, holding him by his shoulders. Sakamoto was on the ground, unable to get up as Kamoshida approached him. "No... No, I don't want to die!" He whimpered as the Shadow laughed.

As Ren was restrained by the soldiers, the atmosphere seem to change around him, and he saw a glowing butterfly, which seem to emanate a girl's voice. " ** _This is truly an unjust game... Your chances of winning are almost none._** " the voice spoke, " ** _But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you..._** " Suddenly, the voice and butterfly vanished, and the atmosphere returned to the way it was before.

Suddenly, a new voice appeared in his head, and this one was that of a slightly deep male voice. " **What's the matter...? Are you simply going to watch?** " It asked, " **Are you forsaking him to save yourself? Death awaits him if you do nothing. Was your previous decision a mistake then?** "

Ren's mind flashed back to the incident that caused him to be arrested. Did he regret ever trying to step in and save that woman back then? "No... It wasn't!" He growled under his breath, and he struggled to break free of the soldiers grip on him. Sakamoto was being raised up against the wall by another soldier, held by his throat, and with a sword ready to stab him.

" **Very well... I have heeded your resolve.** " The voice spoke, and Ren suddenly gained a splitting headache as his eyes glowed the same yellow as Kamoshida's, and he started to scream in pain. " **Vow to me. I am thou, thou art I... Thou who art willing to perform all sacrilegious acts for thine own justice! Call upon my name, and release thy rage!** " With one final scream, Ren's head limped, but was soon finding strength as the voice finished, " **Show the strength of thy will to ascertain all on thine own, though thou be chained to Hell itself!** "

"Execute him!" Kamoshida ordered, pointing at Sakamoto.

"That's enough!" Ren shouted, his face filled with a rebellious rage.

This drew the attention of the Shadow of a man. "What was that...?" He questioned, "You desire to be killed that much? Fine!" The knight holding the blonde-haired boy dropped him, and he slumped to the floor. With a nod of his head, the supposed 'king' got one of his knights to slam Ren in the face with his shield, knocking off his glasses. The two knights that pinned him down before now had their spears holding him against the wall, as the third knight readied its' sword. Sakamoto couldn't do anything but watch.

Suddenly, Ren's eyes snapped open, and a huge gust of wind caused everyone to be pushed back from him. When the wind died down, everyone saw that he had gained a mask over his eyes. It almost looked like one that should be made for a masquerade party; black and white, domino-styled.

Ren felt it, and tried to pry it off. After an intense struggle, he finally managed to do so, taking some of his own blood with it. After a dramatic pause, he looked at Kamoshida with a sinister grin as his body became encased in blue, demonic flames. A malefic laugh could be heard as the flames peeled off of him, revealing new garments to replace his old ones. He donned a black ankle-length tailcoat, a high-necked waistcoat with gold accents, black jogger-style pants, brown-black winklepickers, and a pair of red gloves.

The flames then took on the form of a monster behind him. It had a long, bull-like horns, a very tall black top hat, a red coat and leggings over his black body and white cummerbund, red gloves, black wings, and chains that seem to connect to him. "Come forth, Arsene!" Ren shouted, waving his hand forward. With the chains, his Persona whipped two of the soldiers out of existence, shocking Shadow Kamoshida and Sakamoto. The fake king scrambled out of the way, hiding behind his third knight.

" **I am the pillager of twilight: Arsene!** " Ren's Persona shouted, " **I am the rebel's soul that resides within you. If you so desire, I shall consider granting you the power to break through this crisis.** "

"Then give me your power!" Ren declared, turning his sights on Kamoshida and his last line of defense.

"Who the hell are you...?!" Kamoshida demanded, "Guard, kill that one!" The soldier suddenly became a black and red puddle, transforming into its monster Shadow form; a Jack-o-Lantern. "You'll learn the true strength of my men!" The false king declared.

" **Detest the enemies before you! Change that animosity into power... and unleash it!** " Arsene ordered. Ren followed his advice, glaring at the Shadow, and unleashed a dark force of energy from underneath it. It was sent flying into the air, crashing into the ground, where it vanished from sight.

" **This power of mine is yours!** " Arsene told Ren, " **Kill them however you want. Run wild to your heart's content!** " With that, he vanished in blue flames, reverting back to the mask form Ren had before.

"What...?" Sakamoto started, baffled by what he had just seen, "What was that just now...?" Ren looked down at himself, realizing at this point that his clothes changed.

"You little..." Kamoshida growled, racing towards Ren. However, before he could get any closer, Sakamoto got up on his feet at long last, and tackled Sakamoto with a body blow, knocking him down.

"Ha! You like that, you son of a bitch?!" He demanded.

"Lock the cell!" Ren ordered, grabbing the keys that Kamoshida dropped and tossing them to Sakamoto. He caught them as his partner in crime escaped the cell, with him following behind, locking the cell door as Kamoshida rose back up.

"Kay, it's locked up!" Sakamoto declared, then to Ren he asked, "Hey, what was that just now?! And... your clothes!" Just as he said this, Ren's clothing suddenly reverted back to the Shujin attire he wore before, complete with a new pair of glasses.

Kamoshida reached the bars, slamming them hard and startling the two boys. "You bastards!" He growled.

"This is effin' nuts!" Sakamoto muttered, "Anyways, let's scram. You lead the way!" Ren nodded in agreement, and the two boys raced away from Kamoshida, who was shouting for the guards to pursue them.

* * *

At this point, someone locked up in the upper level sensed the presence of the two individuals down below. "This feeling..." he muttered, his voice was that of a young boy, though his figure was not human at all, "What is with this feeling? Does this mean someone will rescue me?"

* * *

In reality, Haneru and Guren both finished their lunches, and returned to class for their fourth period. As they sat down, Makoto could see that Guren had a concerned expression on her face. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"You know that second-year student we're suppose to get? The one living at my uncle's place" She reminded her, "Apparently, he didn't arrive to school yet, and I left him so close to where it was, too."

"Are you that worried about him not arriving to school?" Makoto asked, who's Student Council President side started to kick in with concern.

Guren paused for a second, then answered, "Of course not! I'm just worried about the commotion it will gain at home. When my uncle Sojiro gets angry, it's hard not to hear his voice from two blocks away. And knowing my luck, I bet people outside of my family will blame me for not bringing him here personally."

"But you aren't the one at fault!" Makoto pointed out, "It was his choice to skip school. I'll make sure that no one blames you for his absence."

"But he is on probation! He shouldn't BE skipping school, or else he'll be brought to the cops!"

Haneru was in the middle of the two girl's whisper, but didn't say anything. Like there was anything he could talk about. He didn't know Sakamoto or Amamiya, so he had no say in the matter. All he could do in the meantime was wait for class to start.

* * *

On one end of the spectrum, Ren and Sakamoto ran from the cell they had the Shadow Kamoshida locked in. In another, a mysterious figure locked in a cell, sensing their presence. In another, the IRL Kamoshida pausing, sensing something wasn't right in the back of his mind, though he wasn't sure what. Finally, there was concerns of Guren and the puzzlement of Haneru. What they all didn't realize was that all of these things would connect, forming alliances, making enemies, and creating the start of the next generation of Phantom Thieves.

* * *

 **Next Time:**

 **School King of Lust!**


	9. School King of Lust!

**April 11**

Inside the Metaverse, Ren and Sakamoto both ran through the prison, avoiding the knights and soldiers that were patrolling the place, searching for them. They also had to deal with locked cell doors that blocked their path, and other. They also noticed other prisoners, most of which had volleyballs for heads. Confused and bewildered by what this was all about, they wanted to make sure they got out of this place alive. However, their troubles increased when they reached the next level, where a drawbridge was raised. Other than that, there was no way forward.

"Another dead end?" Sakamoto noticed, "Dammit! How the hell're we supposed to get outta here?!"

"Hey, you there!" Called out a boy's voice. Ren and Sakamoto looked at each other, wondering if either one said that in a different voice. "Blondie! Frizzy Hair! Look over here!" Shouted the voice again, and the pair looked to the cell next to them. What they saw perplexed them. It looked like a sort of chibi person you would find on tv, only this thing had characteristics of a cat. It was predominately black, with white paws, muzzle, and a white-tipped tail, and blue eyes. It wore a yellow scarf, and it had a utility belt on its' waist.

"Wh-What is this thing?!" Sakamoto asked in shock.

"You're not soldiers of this castle, right?" The cat creature asked, "Get me out of here! Look, the key's right there!" He pointed at the wall, where sure enough, a key ring and cell key were hanging at.

Ren looked to the keys as his vulgar ally barked, "We're trying to get the hell out of here! I mean, you obviously look an enemy, too!"

"I'm locked up here, so how can I be your enemy?!" The cat creature asked, "Help me out!"

"Are you...a cat?" Ren asked.

"I am NOT a cat!" The creature growled, "Say that again and I'll make you regret it!"

Just then, the trio heard the sounds of clanking footsteps from down below. "They're catching up already!" Sakamoto noticed, pulling out his smartphone, "Shit, there's still no service. Ain't there any way to contact someone outside?! How the hell do we get out...?!"

"Hey, you two!" The cat creature cried out, getting their attention again, "You want to know where the exit is? Let me out and I'll take you there. You don't want to get caught and executed, right?"

The two boys looked at one another, then Ren asked, "Can you really help us?"

"I never go back on my word!" The cat creature answered.

"This thing sounds like it's all talk..." Sakamoto stated, disbelieving the cat's words.

"If you guys think you can get out on your own, then be my guest!" The cat creature stated, "If you don't hurry, they'll catch you."

Sakamoto looked to Ren, who paused for a second, then stated, "We don't have a choice. Let's help him." He went over and grabbed the cell key.

"Fine..." his partner answered in a disgruntled tone.

Once the creature was free, he stretched his arms out as he stated, "Ahhhh... Freedom tastes so great..."

"So where's the exit, monster cat?!" Sakamoto demanded.

"Don't call me a cat! I am Morgana!"

"Shut up and hurry it up! You wanna be locked up again?!"

This threat did get the cat creature named Morgana scared, so he stammered, "A-Alright, sheesh! Follow me and stay quiet." He dashed towards the drawbridge, mainly to the Kamoshida statue next to it, and pulled the mouth down. Its' eyes glowed, and the drawbridge came down, revealing a new passage.

"How were we supposed to know to do that?!" Sakamoto questioned in surprise.

"Hmph, amateur." Morgana scoffed, "Come on, let's keep going!" With that, he led the two lost boys along the path back to the entrance.

* * *

Back in reality, fourth period had started for school, and Haneru, Guren and Makoto were all writing notes in their notebooks, listening to what the teacher, Mr. Inui. Makoto was focused, while Haneru kept running his hand through his hair, trying to keep up. Guren was the only one not really paying attention. She was wondering about Ren, and what happened to him. She left him back at the station before, but it wasn't too far off from the school. Did he really skip class? Or was he dealing with something else?

He heard some moaning next to her, and saw Haneru struggling. He had brushed his hair with his hand so much, it was starting to go out of place here and there. _'Seems like this guy doesn't handle History too well.'_ She told herself, her expression somewhat amused.

Just then, there was a throat-clearing, and Guren looked to Mr. Inui, who looked back at her. "Is there something distracting you, Ms. Sakura?" He asked her directly.

"Not particularly." she answered, "Just that Kurosawa-san seems to be struggling." All attention turned to her and Haneru, who looked startled at this.

"Is this true, Mr. Kurosawa?" Mr. Inui asked.

"Well... I don't deny that History is my worst subject." Haneru sheepishly admitted, "But I'm doing my best to keep up, sir."

"Then stop with the constant groaning in my ear, why don't you?" Guren asked, her tone showing how annoyed she was.

"Involuntary noises. I can't help it, sometimes."

"Enough!" Mr. Inui barked, "Mr. Kurosawa, please try to not distract the other students."

"Yes, sir..." Haneru replied.

The History teacher looked to Sakura as he added, "As for you, I'm sure you found plenty of other things outside of school more distracting than him. I'd suggest you learn to pay attention to what's in front of you."

"Sir..." Guren replied, her tone showing signs of spite. It wasn't just the students that gave her a hard time for being in prison or getting into trouble, but also some of the teachers find ways to slide comments relating to that at her. It ground her gears more than anything of the other students say.

"Now then, back to what I was saying..." Mr. Inui continued talking with his lecture, but Haneru and Guren weren't totally into it. Guren was angry at the teacher, and at Haneru for getting her in trouble like that. Haneru was irritated by Guren calling him out like that in the classroom. Makoto briefly looked at the two of them, feeling sympathetic for her BFF, but continued jotting down notes.

* * *

At this point, Ren and Sakamoto, who's real first name was Ryuji, found themselves in the real world once more, and approaching the school. From where they were standing at, they had just dealt with an ordeal like nothing they experienced before. They followed the cat creature, Morgana, but not before dealing with a few bits of interference along the way. Fortunately, Morgana turned out to wield a being called a Persona, too; Zorro. Thanks to him and a bit of teaching he gave Ren, they were able to beat the soldiers that got in their way, and escape thanks to the app on Ren's phone. However, they got told on by the police as soon as they returned to go to school, despite the bewildering experience they had.

"I'm sure we came the same way..." Ryuji stated, "What's goin' on here...?"

"That's exactly what I wanted to ask you." The school sounselor suddenly appeared before them at the top of the stairs, "We received a call from the police."

"That damn cop snitched on us after all!" Ryuji growled.

"Hmm... It's rare not to see you alone." The counselor noticed, "Where were you roaming around until this time?"

"Uhh..." Ryuji wasn't sure how to answer this, but went for the honest, yet unbelievable answer, "A ca-castle?"

"So, you have no intention of giving an honest answer?" The counselor asked. Figures he wouldn't believe the truth.

"What's this about a 'castle'?" A voice spoke up, and the two boys were startled. Kamoshida appeared, wearing the same PE clothing instead of what they saw him previously in. "You seem so carefree, Sakamoto." He told the delinquent-looking boy, "Quite a difference from when you did morning practice for the track team."

Taken aback at first from the sudden change in appearance and personality, Ryuji recovered as he barked, "Shuddup! It's your fault that-."

"How dare you speak that way to Mr. Kamoshida!" The counselor snapped, "There's not much leeway left for you, you know?"

"He's the one that provoked me!" Ryuji pointed out.

"Do you really want to be expelled?!" The counselor asked, "In any case, you'll have to explain yourself! Follow me!"

"What?!" Ryuji growled angrily, "This is bull-!"

"Come now. I should have been more considerate, too." Kamoshida interrupted Ryuji's rant, "Let's just say that we were both to blame."

"Well, if you say so..." the counselor sighed, "Still you're coming with me. It's undeniable that you're extremely late." Ryuji grumbled a 'Fine...' under his breath, and followed the counselor inside, but not before snapping a look at Kamoshida.

"By the way, you're that new second-year transfer student, correct?" The PE noticed, "Ren Amamiya? Have we met somewhere?"

Ren didn't answer at first. He wasn't sure whether to mention that he had just met him in the castle, and locked him up as well. He didn't seem to remember him that recently, which was strange. However, they did meet before that. "Yeah. You offered a ride to me after picking up that girl in your car." He explained.

"That's right... I remember now." Kamoshida remembered, "Well, I'll overlook this just for today." He then gave Ren a glare as he added, "I'm sure you've heard from the principal, but cause any trouble and you'll be expelled. Understand?"

"I understand." Ren answered.

He turned to the side as he added, "Course, you are living with the uncle of our Shujin Jailbird. Who knows what she'll get you into." Before Ren could question him, Kamoshida changed the subject as he continued, "At any rate, hurry up and go to the faculty office. I'm sure Ms. Kawakami's tired of waiting. Good luck trying to enjoy your new school life." With that, he walked away.

Ren was concerned. As far as he could see, Kamoshida didn't make any blunt threats about killing him, like he did in the castle. He didn't make any mention of the castle whatsoever. He was like any normal teacher, well as far as scumbag teachers go. Still, he was right about one thing; He had to go to the faculty office to meet Ms. Kawakami. He wandered up the steps, and into the school.

* * *

The rest of the time in school was pretty hit and miss from there. After getting scolded by Ms. Kawakami, he was escorted to his classroom. His introduction was...well, half-necessary. Apparently, based on the whispers of the students, both in the class and in the hallway, he was already figured out as a student with a criminal record. Some questioned how much of a delinquent was he. He was apparently compared a lot to Guren Sakura, who's criminal record sheet was...to be frank, a lot worse than him. He also heard about a third-year transfer student who transferred today, and wondered if this kid was as bad as the second-year, though most dismissed this as there was no report of him having a criminal record. The day was also short-lived, due to the subway accident yesterday.

As he left for the day, he bumped into Ryuji once more, who asked to see him at the rooftop. While he was told not to get involved with him by Kawakami, and was told to go straight back home, he did have some things to discuss with the only other person who was involved in...whatever the hell he had been through.

Meanwhile, Makoto and Guren had just stepped outside of class as the former asked, "So, you wanna study in the library? I want to get my schoolwork taken care of before I head home."

"Can't. Got a text from my uncle. He wants me to take Ren Amamiya back home with me. He is in pretty big trouble."

"Yeah... Well, when you are late for class on the first day of school, you should be scolded by your family." Makoto stated in an authoritative tone.

"Says the great Student Council President of our school." Guren stated in an obviously dramatic tone. Both of them chuckled at this. "Well, in any case, I'd better hunt him down. Don't study too hard!" And with that, she ran off to find Ren.

Makoto started walking to the library as Haneru came out of the classroom, and saw her leave. _'The red-eyed girl.'_ He noticed, _'If I heard correctly, she's the Student Council President.'_ He looked at his school bag, thinking. _'Most of the homework seemed simple enough, but I could use the extra help. Especially in History.'_ He groaned at that last subject. He knew his mom was tired of helping him out with his homework, plus now she was tired from the busy schedule she had. Plus, he wanted to make friends here, and the Sakura girl clearly didn't want to be friends with him. So, he might as well try to gain an ally in this second one.

He followed her to the library. As soon as he entered in, he saw the table she was at, which had her pile of books, the book in which she was studying from open next to her, and the homework she was working on. Haneru took a deep breath, exhaled, then decided to take a chance.

He approached the chair on the opposite side of the table, and asked, "Excuse me?"

Makoto looked up at him, and asked, "Can I help you?"

"Y-Yeah. I was just wondering, is it okay to study here with you? I could use the extra help."

She paused for a second, then answered, "As long as you don't distract me too much, it's fine with me."

"Thanks." Haneru sat down on the chair, pulling out his books, and starting with his math homework. He pulled out a pen, and began working. Makoto looked at him curiously, then continued working.

For a while, neither one of them said anything as they went through several subjects in silence. There was whispers all around, some questioning why this boy was wanting to sit at the same table with 'Ms. Perfect'. Haneru was slightly distracted, but Makoto seemed too focused.

After a while, Makoto closed the last book, sighing, "Done."

"That was fast!" Haneru whispered in a startled tone, "How could you get that done so quickly?!"

"It was pretty easy, if you listen hard." Makoto answered, putting her textbooks and stuff in her bag, "Well, I should get going."

"W-Wait!" Haneru stopped her, which was followed by hushes from some of the nearby students. He then brought his voice down as he asked, "I'm...really needing help in my History. It's the last thing I need to finish here. Please help me out here?"

Makoto was slightly surprised for the plea for help with studies, as this rarely ever happened to her outside of Guren. However, she smiled as she answered, "Of course. What is it you need help with?"

"Well, you see... I'm not sure which date the Muromachi period started, or how it started." Haneru indicated, "And... I really don't understand much of the other questions, either."

"The Muromachi period started in 1333, after the Kamakura shogunate was toppled." Makoto began, sitting in the chair next to him, pointing at the passage in the textbook where it said, "See? It's all right here."

"Oh... How did I miss that?!" Haneru asked in confusion, "Sorry. History was always pretty boring to me. I only look at it if it was connected to an anime or video game I like."

"I see..." Makoto muttered, seeing why he proclaimed himself as an otaku without hesitation in class, "Well, if you study it hard enough, you might find some interesting facts you never knew about. Here, let me show you in the next question..."

Haneru looked to her as she flipped through the pages, looking at the next question, then going back through to help him find the answer. He smiled at her, finding her a strict, yet nice presence to be around, and followed her lesson.

* * *

Up on the rooftop, Ryuji got Ren to come join him. He was sitting on one of the unused desks that they kept up there.

"There you are." Ryuji stated as Ren approached him, "Sorry for callin' you up here like this. I bet Kawakami already told you stuff like 'don't get involved with him', huh?"

"How'd you know?" Ren asked, sitting at a spare table.

Ryuji sighed, "Figured as much. Then again, we're in the same boat. Heard you got a criminal record. Everyone's talkin' about it. No wonder you're so gutsy. But, then again, you ain't got nothin' on Guren Sakura."

"I'm staying at her uncle's shop." Ren explained, "What did she do to get so much trouble all the time?"

"People say she a cursed girl who always ends up in the middle of something bad, and gets blamed for it. No one likes being near her, except our Student Council Prez." Ryuji explained, "But enough about that. Let's back to what was all that that happened? You know, how we almost got killed at a castle... It wasn't a dream, right? You remember it too, yeah?"

"Yeah." Ren answered, "How could I forget?"

"Well, just 'cause we both remember it doesn't mean much though..." Ryuji sighed, "I mean, even if it was a dream, you saved me from Kamoshida. So yeah... Thanks, Amamiya."

"You're welcome." Ren nodded, "I just had to do something to save you."

Ryuji smiled at him, then looked down at the ground, wondering. "But man, that Kamoshida we saw there. You prolly don't know about it, but there are some rumors about him. That asshole who was all full of himself at the castle."

He looked up at Ren as he explained, "No one says anything against him 'cause he's some medalist who took the volleyball team to the nationals. The way Kamoshida was king of that castle felt crazy real 'cause of that. I wonder if we can go back to that castle again..." He then rubbed his head as he answered, "Ugh, forget it. Must've all been a dream! It has to be!"

Suddenly, there was a loud slam, made by the door to the rooftop opening up. "There you are!" Barked a voice. The boys turned to see Guren enter onto the roof, glaring at Ren.

"Crap, it's her!" Ryuji gasped.

"Get lost, Sakamoto. He's coming with me!" Guren growled, grabbing Ren's collar, and dragging him to the door.

"W-Wait, hold on a second!" Ren pleaded.

"No excuses! After that lecture of trying to earn my respect, you end up pulling a stunt like this! Unbelievable..."

Ren looked back at the guy who called him up here in the first place, who looked pretty scared at the presence of Guren. As they were about to exit the roof, he stammered, "I-I'm Ryuji Sakamoto. I'll c-come talk if I see you around. D-Don't ignore me, all right?" Ren couldn't even nod, as the collar that he was being pulled by was nearly getting ripped off. Guren opened the door, shoved Ren ahead of her, then slammed the door behind her.

"Honestly, you have any idea how worried I was?" Guren asked him as they exited down the steps, "I wasn't worried about you, in particular, but of the scolding I would get for not keeping an eye on you! Now, I might be in trouble because you were late to school!"

Ren wasn't able to say anything as they continued down the steps. As they passed the second floor, Makoto and Haneru exited the library, and saw the two leave. "So that's the rumored transfer student." Makoto noticed, "Guess Guren is cracking the whip on him to go home. Good for her."

"She does seem strict to everyone, doesn't she?" Haneru muttered, turning to her, "Anyways, thanks so much for the help. I really annoy my mom whenever I ask her to help me with my History."

"You just needed a good way to motivate yourself and a keen eye to look for clues in the textbook." Makoto replied, "You'll figure it out, eventually."

"In the meantime, is it okay if I study with you at the library?" Haneru asked, "You're pretty smart, but I can tell you are kind."

Makoto looked a bit flattered at the compliment, and she answered, "Well, there are times when I can't automatically go there. I am the Student Council President, so I have other things to do."

"Understood." Haneru responded, "Well, I won't force you away from your duties. I'll just study at the library after school, and I'll see you when I see you."

Makoto smirked at him, and stated, "You know, for a self-proclaimed otaku, you are a hard studier. I can see that."

"Well, I do have motivation. Meaning I can't play games or watch anime if my grades aren't high enough."

"I see..." Makoto understood, "Well, in any case, welcome to Shujin Academy. I'm Makoto Nijima. If you need my help at any point, come to the Student Council room. I'm always there to help if you can't blend in."

"Thanks, Nijima-san. I'll take that offer when I need to." Haneru replied, and he walked away, leaving Makoto to go the other direction. _'Yay! I think I made my first friend! And she's pretty nice!'_ He looked back to see her turn the corner and disappear from view. _'Plus, she has brains and beauty. The only downside is that Sakura girl that seems close to her. She might be a hassle to be around...'_

* * *

Outside the school, Ren was forcefully led towards the alleyway next to the school, then he and Guren stopped. "Okay, before I hand you over to my uncle, I want to know one thing..." the latter started, "What the hell did you end up in that made you miss half a day of school?"

Ren seemed hesitant, not sure if he should be truthful or not. "Were you scared? Did Sakamoto try to make you skip school? You couldn't have been lost, since I left you so close to it!" Guren was making sure every choice was tossed out the window, "I want the truth. Tell me what you were doing that made you late for school!"

Ren looked down, seeing the puddle that he stepped in before arriving at the school. He then answered, "It...was really bizarre. Sakamoto and I ended up at this castle."

"A castle. Really?" Guren scoffed, disbelieved at this.

"It's true. There was a castle with our schools name on it. There were these knights, monsters, and that PE teacher, Kamoshida. He looked so different from his usual look." Guren's eyes narrowed, his story starting to trigger something. Something she found disbelieving that he would end up involve in.

"Then there was this voice, and I ended up summoning this creature thanks to a mask." Ren continued, "Sakamoto and I barely escaped with our lives, but was guided out thanks to this monster cat named Morgana. After that, we ended up back here."

Guren crossed her arms, closed her eyes, then thought for a moment. "I get if you don't believe me, but it is the truth." Ren finished.

Guren pondered for a moment. It was clear what Ren had experienced, but as to how he ended up in the Metaverse, she had no idea. However, she had no intention of explaining it to him that she knew it as well. She vowed not to get anyone involved with her and the Metaverse, even if they could use a Persona, like this guy seemed to have unlocked while he was there.

"Can I have your bag, please?" Guren finally asked, "I wanna make sure you aren't taking any illegial drugs."

"Wha-what?!" Ren asked, bewildered she would go to that choice.

"I will ask that Sojiro inspects your belongings, too. Cause if you ask me, that's the dumbest thing I have ever heard." Before Ren could defend himself, she continued, "I've heard enough. Come on. We're heading back home."

Ren could see there was no arguing with her, so he went towards the subway station. Guren paused and looked back at the school. _'One thing's for sure about what he said; Kamoshida has a Palace, and it is the school, itself.'_ She told herself, _'I always never liked that teacher. Guess now it's time for him to have a change of heart.'_

As she turned and walked away, she gasped, "Crap! I forgot about meeting up with Makoto this afternoon!" She sighed disparagingly as she muttered, "I gotta text her so we can set up an appointment together..."

* * *

That night, Ren got a scolding by Sojiro. He didn't blame Guren for the incident, but did ask her to take him directly to school tomorrow, so as to not see him slack off again. With that understanding, Guren went home to do her homework before going to sleep.

Haneru also arrived late home, after going through a long series of different subway lines. It was difficult what with the incident that was still being cleaned up. He arrived late, got supper for him and mom, all the while explaining how school was. Afterwards, he went to his room, played a few games, watched some anime at the same time, and then went to sleep.

That night, Ren ended up entering the same prison that he arrived at a couple nights ago. Igor and the twin wardens were waiting for him, once again.

"About time you come to." Caroline stated, slamming her baton on the prison bars, "On your feet, inmate!"

"Our master wishes to speak with you. It's for your own sake that you take his words to heart." Justine added. Ren stood up, and grasped the bars of the cell, looking at Igor.

"First off, let us celebrate our reunion." Igor started, then he noticed, "Oh...? You've awakened to your powers. And special ones at that. Your rehabilitation can finally begin."

"Rehabilitation?" Ren echoed, confused.

"There is no need to understand it all for the time being." Igor answered, "You will be training the power of Persona, which you have awakened to. Personas are, in other words, a 'mask'; an armor of the heart when confronting worldly matters. I have high expectations for you."

"What do you mean?" Ren asked him.

"There is no need to worry." Igor once again brushed off Ren's curiosity, "You will learn when the time comes. By the by... have you come to appreciate the Metaverse Navigator? Using it will allow you to come and go between reality and Palaces."

"Metaverse Navigator? Palaces?" Ren echoed, thinking about the app that was on his phone, and the castle he was at before.

"I bestowed it to you as a means to train you as a thief." Igor explained.

"The Metaverse Navigator is a gift from our master!" Caroline explained sternly, "You better take care in using it, Inmate!"

"Devote yourself to your training so that you become a fine thief." Justine followed.

"It must be disheartening to make use of the Metaverse Navigator alone." Igor assumed, "Should there be others who would prove beneficial to you, I will grant it to them as well. Why, I have even bestowed the app upon a couple individuals already."

This bit of news surprised Ren. Who were these other individuals who already had an app like this? Where were they? Did he know about their existence?

As if Igor read his mind, he chuckled as he stated, "You will learn of their identities in due time. This is all for you to grow as a most excellent thief..."

Just then, the alarm went off once again. "Hmph, it's time." Caroline noticed, "Go back and enjoy whatever rest you might have..." Ren could feel his drowsiness take him over, and he fell backwards, his consciousness fading once more.

* * *

 **April 12**

The next morning, Guren made sure to pick up Ren at Café Leblanc, this time with strict orders to take him all the way to school. She did so, keeping an eye on the young man. She couldn't help but start to be curious of him, after what he said yesterday. The fact that he entered the Metaverse, and even a Palace at that, was pretty crazy. It blew her mind that a random person that just showed up at her uncle's place just so happened to go there a couple days afterwards.

However, she knew this guy wouldn't stand a chance if he actually did go there. He was too wet behind the ears, and he didn't have a teacher, like she did. Course, the thought of Daichi, and the sacrifice he made a year ago made her fear of anyone she knew dying there. While she didn't really care for the guy, she didn't want the thought of him dying there be on her conscious. She had to take care of Kamoshida's Palace, and get it done quick.

Haneru, meanwhile, was the only one of the three sides that didn't know the truth about that particular Palace. That didn't mean the thought of wanting to go there wasn't in his head. He really, REALLY wanted to find another Palace, but didn't about how to find one. He recalled how he randomly found about Oda's Palace, and that the navigator app was responsible for that. Now was to find a crummy person who had strong desires. He had to keep an eye out for that.

School went pretty much as well as it should. Ren was able to demonstrate his intellect in his second-year class, while both Makoto and Haneru were able to answer questions given to them in class, as well.

During PE, for both Haneru and Ren, Kamoshida had them practice to see if they could handle the volleyball rally tomorrow. Guren was forced into practice, despite the girls not being chosen for the rally. This wasn't uncommon, as Guren had gained a reputation to be picked on by Kamoshida during these times. However, like all other times, she rebelled against his suppression, striking every ball back as best as she could, despite not getting any mercy from Kamoshida's strikes. Needless to say, she was pretty battered by him, but didn't show the pain she was in.

Haneru might've gotten under Kamoshida's skin yesterday, due to their encounter during lunch, cause he was not given that much mercy either. He did get battered from all the strong hits Kamoshida delivered with the volleyball, but he managed to pull off some return shots before he was replaced. He did his best not to show weakness to the man, and compared to the Metaverse, this was not as painful.

Ren got injured during his volleyball session, but after one strike that hit his face, knocking his glasses off, the glare he gave Kamoshida somehow made him nervous. There seemed to be a difference in his character when his glasses were off of him, like they were the thing that held back his rebellious personality.

After school, Guren made sure to tell Ren to go home before her, telling him not to take any shortcuts. This was all so she could prevent him from going back to the Palace before she took it down. Haneru went to the library to complete any assignments given to him, and Makoto was busy doing her Student Council duties.

Outside the school's front gate, Ryuji was waiting for Ren to show up. "Yo." he greeted him, "I wanna talk about that castle from yesterday. I tried tellin' myself it was all just a dream... but I couldn't do it. I can't act like nothing happened. It's all connected to that bastard Kamoshida, after all."

"So, what do you want to do about it?" Ren asked.

"I wanna find out what's up with that place, no matter what." Ryuji answered, "And y'know, you're the only person I can rely on for this stuff. So, you in?"

"Sure. What next?" Ren asked.

"Though so..." Ryuji sighed, thinking he said one thing, then realizing what he actually said, he stammered, "O-Oh, you ARE in?!" Ren nodded. He didn't deny he was curious about what he had experienced, and wanted to learn more about that castle. Not to mention it connected to his past couple dreams. Despite what Guren told him to do, he couldn't just leave this alone. Plus, Ryuji didn't seem like a bad guy. He just wanted to know about that place like he did.

"Looks like I managed to talk some sense into you." Ryuji stated with a smirk, "I think we should just try and retrace our steps from yesterday. In the meantime, you're walkin' to the station, right? Let's go together. Lemme know if you notice any other weird buildings on the way." With that, they went on their way.

At this point, Guren was heading down the steps, leaving the school, she turned to see Ren walking away from the scene, with Ryuji with him. _'I really hope those two aren't planning to go back there anytime soon.'_ she told herself, pulling out her phone, easily locating where she hid her Metaverse app, _'Now, let's see what Kamoshida's Palace is like. Let's start with his name.'_ She typed in 'Suguru Kamoshida', got a hit.

 _'And the place is Shujin Academy, right?'_ Guren recalled, thinking back to her conversation with Ren. Again, there was a hit for that location.

 _'Finally, he said that he arrived at a castle, so that must be what Kamoshida thinks of the place.'_ She typed in the word 'castle', and the atmosphere shifted. That was all she needed to discover that she found the Palace.

"Okay, let's go." She told herself, and she raced to the alleyway, hiding herself from any students arriving on the scene.

At this point, Haneru left the building, sighing as he struggled with History homework, once more. He had to ask his mom for help again, since Makoto wasn't around today to help him. As he went down the steps, he looked ahead, and saw Guren Sakura in the alleyway, looking at her smartphone. _'It's that girl again. What's she doing?'_ He wondered, going down the steps to get a closer inspection. However as he was about to reach her, he was blocked by a group of friends passing in front of him, talking about what was gonna happen at the volleyball rally tomorrow. He was distracted by them, and didn't even know what happened to Guren. However, by the time he looked at the alleyway again, she had vanished.

"Where did she go?" Haneru asked, looking about, then stepping into the alleyway. He didn't notice that Guren had just disappeared due to using the Metaverse app. He assumed she went down the alleyway, and raced along it. He turned the corner, and nearly ran into Ren and Ryuji, who were startled by his sudden appearance.

"Whoa, watch where you were going!" Ryuji barked at him.

"S-Sorry." Haneru replied, "I was just looking for a girl. Third-year. Goes by the name of Guren Sakura?"

"Sorry, man. Though, you'd be best to avoid her." Ryuji warned him, "She is pretty scary, and it's not because she has a list on her criminal record."

"She...has a criminal record?" Haneru asked, then he remembered that Kamoshida said the same thing on Saturday, "Guess that explains why she's called the 'Shujin Jailbird'."

"Yeah, well, you'd better beware of her." Sakamoto told him, "She can snap at you if you piss her off. And believe me, when she's like that, she's scary."

"Thanks, but I can handle myself." Haneru waved off the warning, passing by him, "Besides, I think she's just misunderstood. I don't think she is as bad as she sounds. Though... that doesn't stop on how strict she is. Welp, see ya!" With that, he passed by the pair of boys, and went on his way home.

"Who was that guy?" Ren asked.

"Beats me. Never saw him at school before." Ryuji answered, "Maybe he's that new third-year transfer student. Looks pretty descent." Ren couldn't help but be interested in the boy they had just met. Something piqued when he saw him. It was like he was someone to make sure to know.

"So...which way did we go from here?" Ryuji asked, looking at the crossroads they were at. "We need to find that castle again." Ren realized they were getting off track, and went back to searching for that castle once more.

* * *

Inside the Metaverse, at the front gate of Kamoshida's castle, Guren, now Lioness, stood in front of it, looking at the highest point. "Extravagant...in a very sick way." she muttered, "Guess this is what Kamoshida thinks of the school, huh?" She looked down at her attire, then inspected her equipment. She always did this so she knew everything was ready. "Right. Let's find a side-passage into this place, and go find his treasure." She declared, and she dove to the castle.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ryuji and Ren tried a couple times to look for the castle by taking the same path, but with no luck finding the place. They always ended up back in the school once more. "Is it smaller than we think it is?" Ryuji asked, "What do you think?"

"Not sure..." Ren answered, "Check on your phone."

"I already did that. I didn't see anything like it around here..." Ryuji started, then he stopped as he recalled something, "Wait, phone... Hey, that reminds me. Didn't you have a navigation app thingy on, back then? I don't know if it was or not, but I heard stuff that sounded like one comin' from your phone. Y'know, didn't it say stuff like 'returned to the real world' or something like that? Let me see your phone for a bit."

Ren took out his smartphone, and Ryuji snatched it away from him. After a second of looking, he noticed the weird app that appeared on Ren's phone just a few days ago. "What's this eyeball lookin' thing?"

"Dunno. It just appeared." Ren answered, "I tried deleting it, but it kept reappearing."

"What?" Ryuji asked, confused, "What a weird app..." He looked into it, then gasped, "Oh, wait, this is it!" He showed off the search history part of the app, exclaiming, "I knew it! It IS a navigation app! There's even your search history! Oh man, I'm such a genius! Let's try using it!"

"But...I don't know how." Ren pointed out.

"Then I'll do it." Ryuji replied, tapping the last search history. The phone then listed out four things: 'Kamoshida', 'Shujin Academy', 'Pervert', 'Castle'. Then afterwards, it said, "BEGINNING NAVIGATION."

"There we go!" Ryuji declared, "Then, we went in a certain direction, and-." Before he could finish, the boys suddenly noticed the atmosphere change around them. All of a sudden, it looked like reality started to warp with black and red rings, transforming the entire place into the castle they had once been in before.

After a moment of bewilderment, Ryuji gasped, "Look! It's the castle from yesterday! We made it back... That means what happened yesterday was for real too." As they walked in, Ryuji looked to Ren and gasped, "Gyah! Those clothes!" Ren looked down himself, surprised. He had no idea that he had suddenly changed into the clothes that he wore to summon that Persona of his.

"That happened last time too, huh?!" Ryuji recalled, "What's with that outfit?"

"I'm not sure..." Ren answered, "But, it looks pretty cool, don't you think?"

"You really seem too lax about this..." Ryuji muttered, "But seriously, what's goin' on here? This makes no effin' sense at all..."

"Hey!" Barked a familiar voice. The pair of boys turned to see the same anthropomorphic cat, Morgana, they rescued before approach them. "Stop making a commotion." He warned the two.

"You?!" Ryuji gasped, not expecting to see that cat again.

"The Shadows stared acting up, so I came here wondering what it could be." Morgana started, "To think you guys would come back to the entrance when you barely managed to escape."

"What is this place?" Ryuji asked the cat, diverting the conversation, "Is this the school?"

"That's right."

"But it's a castle!"

"This castle IS the school, but only to this castle's ruler." Morgana explained.

"The castle's ruler?" Ryuji echoed, confused.

"I think you called him Kamoshida? It's how his distorted heart views the school."

"Kamoshida... Distorted...?" Ren and Ryuji looked to one another before the latter barked, "Explain it in a way that makes sense!"

"I shouldn't have expected a moron to get it." Morgana sighed, causing Ryuji to be really ticked off.

Suddenly, there was a scream, causing Ryuji to ask, in a fearful tone, "What was that?!"

"It must be the slaved captive here." Morgana answered.

"For real?" Ryuji heard another gasp, followed by a clattering of metal, like one of the knights got knocked down, "Oh, shit... It's for real! We saw other guys held captive here yesterday... I'm pretty sure they're from our school."

"Most likely on Kamoshida's orders." The cat assumed, "It's nothing out of the ordinary; it's like that every day here. What's more, you two escaped yesterday. He must have lost his temper quite a bit."

"That son of a bitch!" Ryuji roared, and he charged at the door, slamming his shoulder over and over again at the door, "You hear me, Kamoshida?!"

"Doing that isn't gonna open it, you know..." Morgana muttered.

Suddenly, there was a sound of a lion's roar, followed by two deep male voices that screamed in agony. This got the trio's attention greatly. "What the hell was that?! A lion?!" Ryuji gasped.

"I don't know. I never heard of any of those prowling the castle." Morgana answered, "Still, it might be possible. I haven't explored everything here, yet."

"Well, forget that!" Ryuji retorted, "I just wanna know where those other voices were coming from. Know where they are, Monamona?"

"It's Morgana!" the cat corrected him, "And as for going there, I guess I could guide you there, but only if he comes with us."

Ren looked up at the area where the lion noise came from. The voices came from a lower part of the place, so he doubt they would bump into whatever that lion was. "Let's go." He decided.

"It's settled then!" Morgana cheered, "All right, let's do this. Follow me!" He hopped up to the hole they crawled out of to escape the place before, and entered into the castle.

* * *

Little did they know that the lion noises actually came from Leo, who finished off the Shadows with no mercy whatsoever. "Good boy." Lioness spoke up, who went and pet Leo's head, before it returned to the mane part of her mask. She had just entered into a room that was gated around central part by metal bar. Fortunately, after tailing a couple of the Shadows, she learned how to unlock the inside by pulling a couple of chains on opposite sides of the room, allowing access into the center, and obtaining a map containing half of the Palace. "Never leave something like this behind..." she told herself, folding the map and pocketing it, "Now, lets keep going."

Unlike Ryuji, she didn't make a fuss about the screams she heard down below. She could already tell those weren't even worth her time, as they were most likely cognitions of people from IRL. They didn't need rescuing, as there was no reason to. And besides, the source of the distorted desires was not down, but most likely up, at the top throne room of the castle. After dealing with a few Palaces within her year, she learned a thing or two about pinpointing a Treasure.

After going down a hallway, she ended up back in the Central Hall, only she was on the upper floor now. She looked to one side, and saw a barred gate blocking one way, meaning only one way forward; over the chandeliers. She was a pretty nimble person by now, so jumping along them was no big deal. 'It's like they made this too easy for me.' She told herself.

The moment she thought this, four Jack-o-Lanterns suddenly appeared, surrounding her, unleashing fire attacks with their lanterns simultaneously. "Crap!" She exclaimed, and she took the hit, causing a major fiery explosion over the central hall.

* * *

Down below, the explosion could be heard by the two boys and the anthropomorphic cat. "The hell?!" Ryuji gasped, "What was that?!"

"Who cares? You wanted to go down to where the slaves were at, right?" Morgana asked, "Let's keep going!" He and Ryuji kept moving forward. Ren looked back. Something was happening up above, that was for certain. However, he didn't have the time to double back and investigate it. He had to press onward. He pursued the others down towards the lower parts of the prison.

* * *

Back up top, the Jack-o-Lanterns thought they finished her off. However, within the smoke, Lioness snuck away from the scene, definitely scorched, but still able. She pulled out her sniper rifle, aiming at one of the Shadows. "See how you like getting a sneak shot!" She told herself, and fired the gun. She did a headshot, and knocked one of them out in one hit. The other three looked to where the shot was fired, but before they could act on seeing her, Lioness shot down another in one hit.

The pair of Shadows went and unleashed more flames at Lioness, who was now much more ready, and dodged their attacks. "Ravage them, Leo! Alanna!" She summoned her two Personas to take on each of the targets. It was overkill, but they had it coming when dealing with her. Her Alanna stabbed one of the Jack-o-Lanterns, while Leo wrapped his fangs around the other, and...well, the rest was silence.

Lioness reached the other side of the room, recalling her two Personas. "Leo, sometimes, I just feel like a censor should be placed on you..." She muttered, "Let's keep going." She turned and went through the next door, continuing on her path, which she knew was long and tedious.

* * *

In the real world of Shibuya, Haneru had just surfaced up to the central plaza of town. "Weird... Did I make a wrong turn?" He asked, "I was sure she disappeared down that alleyway. There was no other place she could've gone. Well, there were other side streets, but those two guys would've seen her, wouldn't they?" He paused for a moment, wondering what could've happened to Guren at that fleeting moment when he lost sight of her.

"Eh, guess I'll ask her the next time I see her again." He stated, pulling out his wallet and rummaged for the piece of paper the guy called 'The Beat', "I might as well go and see these people. I have time before I need to go home." He looked at the location, placed it on his normal navigation app on his smartphone, then took the path to where it was.

He went across Main Street, heading to a back alley place that had a building with plenty of windows that, thanks to the sunlight shining down, made excellent mirrors. He turned the corner, and saw The Beat, along with two other characters, who were obviously his dance team.

The first was a tall, fit male character, obviously a couple years older than the rest of the group. He wore a black beanie cap over his short brown hair, wore a skintight brown shirt, a pair of black jeans held up with a black and silver-buckle belt, dark blue shoes with dark gray soles, a blue scarf around his neck, and a silver chain link wrapped around his right wrist.

The third was a young lady around Haneru's age, but who was fit and above-average endowment for a girl her age. She had her black hair in a short, side-ponytail, with the tips of her hair and bangs dyed pink. She wore a white crop-top, with the word 'Kawaii' printed in bold pink font on it, aqua blue yoga pants that were tied around her waist with thick lace, black shoes with pink laces, and an armband with a four-leaf clover, only each leaf had a different color; pink, blue, yellow, and red.

All three of them were stretching as Haneru came onto the scene. The two new faces looked to see him arrive, while The Beat saw him and smirked. "Well, well. Looks like you got curious after all, 'Parkour' Haneru." He greeted, standing up straight, "Didn't think you would arrive."

"So he's the kid who almost bested you at the arcade?" The girl asked, "He is a bit of a cutie, I'll give you that."

The tall guy approached Haneru, looking down at him. The high school student reached just at his chin, but he didn't avert his gaze from him, nor try to show fear. After all, this guy was nothing compared to Oda's Shadow and his monster form.

After a pause, he stated, "You don't look like an experienced street dancer. Tell me, can you really dance beyond a simple game?"

"Sure can!" Haneru answered, "I know I'm not the greatest dancer, but I love the feel of it."

"Then tell me, why do you dance?" The man asked, "What are you dancing for?"

Haneru recalled an episode of the dance anime, where the boy of the same name as he being asked that same question. He smirked as he answered, "I don't have a verbal answer to that. Let me do a dance battle with you, and I'll show you."

The young man paused for a second, then smirked as he answered, "Sure. Why not?"

"We have a sound system here." The Beat told him, pointing at a speaker with a cord that could connect with his smartphone, "If you want, you can pick the song you want to dance to."

"If that's okay with you?" Haneru asked the older guy, "Wait, before we do dance, I would like to know my opponents name."

"...Katashi Yukihara." The man introduced himself.

"Yeah, but his stage name is 'Break'." Beat explained, "By the way, my real name is Noboru. Noboru Shirajō. Our spirit young lady is Lyra Higashi, also known as 'Fresh'."

Haneru looked at her armband, took a second to recognize it, then stated, "I guess you named yourself that due to the Fresh Precure?"

"Oh? You noticed that?" Lyra asked, looking at her armband, "Truth be told, I have a soft spot for that magical girl series, but Fresh is the one with a dance team. Plus, one of the girl's last name is my last name, too."

"I love the series myself." Haneru stated, "Personally, I prefer Suite Precure, but... well, song and dance do go together."

"Pick your song, will you?" Katashi demanded.

"Just having an otaku talk with someone." Haneru stated, pulling out his music app, and pulling out a song he could dance to, "This will be a fun one. Hey, Beat. Mind if you start the music when you think we're ready?"

"You got it." He answered, grabbing Haneru's smartphone and readying to start the music.

Haneru took off his school jacket, revealing the blue shirt with the logo of 'Tribe Cool Crew' on it, and rolled up his pants legs, and got himself ready. He closed his eyes, concentrating. Unlike the main character on the said logo he wore, he wasn't gonna be foolish. He had to put all the lessons he learned from that anime, the skills he knew he had in himself, and deliver it, here and now. He opened his eyes, and Noboru knew he was ready. He pressed the play button.

(Insert 'Hard Knock Days' by EXILE TRIBE)

Haneru and Break felt the beat, the rhythm, and the melody enter their hearts and body. Break issued Haneru the first round in the dance, and he gladly took it. From the first sung note, he started moving, pulling off his parkour and hip-hop dance moves. Throughout the first verse, he started off with his small, less intense moves, as he knew when the moments when to pull off his bigger moves were. From the 'Hey, let's go!' Moments, he pulled off a bit more intensive, before reverting to his less intense moves, right until the chorus. It was right then and there that he pulled off his feelings and moves by unleash his flashy moves right along with the rhythm and beat of the music, getting so influenced by the music, he lost track momentarily of the fact that this was a dance battle, until seeing Break's face, and realizing he needed to pass him the baton to dance at the start of the next verse. Fresh and Beat were watching Haneru, both smiling at Haneru and his enthusiasm and skills.

Right at the second verse, Break took the stage, and his name said what he could do; breakdance. Like Haneru, he held back his flashier, bigger moves until the right time, moving to the rhythm of the music. He clearly had more dance moves, and a better flexibility and understanding of his body movements. It was obvious he was a professional, better than Haneru's self-taught dancing. However, despite this, he wasn't discouraged. Seeing Break go from his small, subtle moves to the more intense ones, especially during the chorus, inspired him.

When the song went into the rap part, Haneru took the stage once more, demonstrating his skills once more, feeling the rhythm and moving to it. He clearly wanted to show and make an impression to Break, who stood there, looking at him dance. When the rap ended, Haneru backed off, looking to Break, egging him to finish the dance. "Watch me, then mimic me." he told the high school student.

Right into the final chorus, he pulled off a series of moves that were fluid and intense. However, they were within Haneru's limit, and he could see Break was wanting to see if he could adapt at the sight of one's dance. He concentrated, seeing every movement and memorizing it. When the chorus repeated, he joined in, and Break danced with him, seeing if he could mimic what he had just seen. It wasn't completely perfect, but they were mostly in sync with one another. Fresh and Beat were impressed by this spectacle. As the song ended, Haneru and Break were dancing their own styles, but it seemed the latter was able to synchronize his breakdance with Haneru's parkour/hip-hop style, right up until the end of the song.

Haneru panted with exhaustion, beads of sweat pouring off of him. Once again, he was so focused in the song, he forgot about his stamina. "Here you go, kid." Beat told him, giving him a water bottle. He popped off the cap and guzzled down the water. "Thanks..." he thanked him.

Haneru looked to Katashi, who grabbed his own squirt bottle and downed his water. He looked to Haneru, making eye contact with him. "So... Did I give you my answer...?" He panted.

Katashi paused for a moment, then started, "You're rough around the edges. You forget to breath properly when you dance, too. It's why you're exhausted right now. That, and your body isn't fully up to the standards to dance as professionally as we do..." Haneru looked to the ground, seeing he had really not left a good enough impression as he had hoped. He knew he wasn't great, but he didn't have to put him down that harshly.

"...But you did show me the reason you dance." Katashi continued, "And I can see it clearly. You like the music you dance to, and demonstrate it, your own heart, and what you fight for, as well. Music...gives you freedom from this chained world." He grinned at this as he finished, "You got the spirit, kid. And for a self-taught dancer, it wasn't that bad."

"Coming from him, that's a compliment of high praise." Lyra stated, "You certainly had me groovin'."

"Man, I knew you were good at that dance game, but seeing your skills, you were killin' the dance floor!" Noboru exclaimed, "Still, Katashi is right. You do need the help."

"Well...you should've seen me a couple years ago." Haneru panted, "I was actually chubby before. Now, thanks to the dancing I have been doing, plus some exercise, I got how I am, now."

"You were chubby?" Lyra asked, "I can't imagine."

"You weren't exactly this thin back when we met, Lyra." Noboru chuckled, getting a hard punch to the shoulder by her.

"Guess it's an otaku thing." Haneru chuckled.

"Hey..." Katashi got his attention back on him, "I think you have what it takes. Whenever you have the time, come dance with us. We'll give you pointers, train you, and who knows? You could end up part of my team; Dance Life."

"Dance Life..." Haneru echoed, smiling, "Absolutely! I will come by whenever I have an opportunity. I do live in Saitama, so it is a bit of a distance."

"Dang, that is a bit far off!" Noboru stated.

"We have a second training spot at Lyra's place in Kita." Katashi explained, looking to the single girl in their team, "We train there at times."

"Yeah. Lyra's folks are pretty loaded." Noboru pointed out.

"Well, I do love dance and I love anime." Lyra stated, "Come by my place, and we can hang. My folks are part of a travel business, so they leave the country most of the time."

"I'll take up that offer, if it isn't too much of a burden to allow a high school boy to your place."

"Please, you're cute, but not that cute." Lyra scoffed, "I like you more as someone I can get on the same wavelength with."

"Besides..." Noboru whispered in Haneru's ear, "She totally has the hots for Katashi." He looked to the two of them, and Lyra obviously knew what he said, as she started to chase him down, intending to give him a beating for saying something so private.

"By the way, we are gonna need a stage name for you." Katashi told him, watching Noboru getting pinned down to the ground by Lyra, "Gotta be something that represents you."

"Something that represents me..." he thought for a moment. In reality, he was Haneru. In the Metaverse, he was Kong. What was he as a dancer. His mind went to why he chose his name as a phantom thief. Not only was it telling others of his might and determination, it reminded him of certain characters whose last names were 'Kong'. One in particular stuck out. The second, well-known monkey who leapt high, nimble, and a rocker at times.

"...Diddy." Haneru decided, "Musical-sounding, but also a character that is not out of reach of anything."

"Diddy, huh?" Katashi questioned, looking at how Lyra was standing over an apologizing Noboru, "Sure. Works for an otaku like you."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Haneru stated, smiling.

* * *

Back in the Metaverse, Lioness was investigating the library of the castle, pulling one book at a time. "Come on, come on! One of these has to be a switch to activate some path forward!" She grimaced. She had been at this for a good while, with no result from it all.

She backed away from the bookshelves, growling in frustration. "This is going nowhere. I've been here forever, and with no results! What am I missing?!" She dug into her pocket, pulling out her map of the place. "There is no other place to go in this castle, except for one way, which is locked. I looked at every nook and cranny, and no dice on a secret switch. This library has to contain something related to that, but I don't know where."

She suddenly heard the castle guards outside the room, and she hid herself in the shadows behind the chairs. Two soldiers entered the room. "Who opened this door?!" Barked one of the soldiers.

"They might be in here!" The other assumed, "Just like those intruders in the dungeon."

 _'Intruders in the dungeon?'_ Lioness echoed in her thoughts. Suddenly, a grim suspicion as to who the intruders were dawned on her, and she grimaced, _'No, no, no! Ren came back here?! Did he take Sakamoto with him, too?!'_

"I see someone there!" Barked the first soldier, overturning the chair Lioness hid behind.

"Gotta run!" She declared, and she ran away from the scene, being pursued by the soldiers. She mentally told herself that she couldn't think of a way through now, so she had to think of one later. Right now, Ren and Sakamoto's lives were more of a priority.

Meanwhile, the trio who were in the dungeon were making their way back up once again. While going down to where the screams came from, Ren and Ryuji were given the lowdown about Palaces, combat, and even using a model pistol Ryuji had as a real gun, all of which was taught by Morgana, much like Mia taught Haneru, and Daichi taught Guren.

When they reached the lowest part of the dungeon, they discovered the tortured victims, that Ryuji intended to free, were nothing more than cognitions of Kamoshida's mind. However, he made sure to memorize each of their faces before they returned back, as his camera on his phone wouldn't work. However, their stay there was way too long, and the guards knew they were about, so they had to evacuate the castle immediately.

"The exit is this way! Let's hurry!" Morgana shouted, racing up the steps as they reached the Central Hall once more. However, before they could reach the entrance, they found themselves surrounded by knights, all of which were waiting for them. Standing on floor above the curved staircase opposite to the entrance was Kamoshida, wearing the same attire as before.

"You knaves again?!" Kamoshida questioned, "To think you'd make the same mistake again. You're hopeless!"

"It's Kamoshida again! And in that same stupid outfit again!" Ryuji growled.

"It's not the same guy you know." Morgana informed him, "The dark, hidden desires of the real Kamoshida have taken a physical form in this world. In other words, that's Kamoshida's Shadow!"

"My, how far the star runner of the track team has fallen." Kamoshida's Shadow scoffed.

"The hell're you gettin' at?!" Ryuji demanded.

"I speak of the 'Track Traitor' who acted in violence, ending his teammates' dreams." the Shadow answered, "Oh, I can only imagine the pain of the others who were dragged under with your... selfish act. You betrayed your teammates and crushed their hopes, yet he still carries on as carefree as ever."

"That's not true!" Ryuji grimaced, though his face showed some guilt.

"You've come along with this fool and are grow going to end up dead. Howe unlucky of you." The Shadow waved a hand forward, ordering to his guards, "Go. Kill them all. Don't sully my castle with garbage."

The front two guards suddenly transformed into horses with ram-like horns; Bicorns. One charged at Ryuji, who was too terrified to dodge. "Ryuji, move!" Morgana shouted, giving him a leaping shove, only to end up the one hit by the Bicorn's attack, making him fall and hit the ground in pain. Ren tried to use his pistol to damage the Bicorn that struck down Morgana, and it did flinch. However, the other Bicorn rammed him, knocking him down as well, making him unable to move, as well. Ryuji could only sit there, after getting back up from Morgana's shove, only to see his two comrades taken down by the monsters.

At this point, Kamoshida made his way down to them, and stomped onto Morgana's back, making him unable to move. The leading knight also placed his foot on Ren's back, pinning him to the ground, too. "Rgh... You piece of-!" Morgana hissed, trying to get back up.

At this point, Lioness finally returned to the Central Room again, looking down from the highest floor. She saw the trio in trouble, and saw Ren in his Phantom Theif gear for the first time. "Ren!" She gasped, though not loudly, "This is bad. He's too much of a fledgling Persona-User to do anything against Shadow Kamoshida!"

"I bet you simply came here on a whim and ended up like this. Isn't that right?" The fake king questioned the terrified Ryuji, "What a worthless piece of trash, getting so emotional so quickly. How dare you raise your hand at me. Though it was only temporary, have you forgotten my kindness in supervising track practice?"

"It wasn't no practice; it was physical abuse!" Ryuji retorted, slamming his fist to the ground, "You just didn't like our team!"

"It was nothing but an eyesore! The only one who needs to achieve results is me!" Shadow Kamoshida snarled, "That coach who got fired was hopeless, too. Had he not opposed me with a sound argument, I would've settled it with only breaking his star's leg."

This bit of news not only startled Ryuji, but also Lioness. She remembered that time when she heard that Sakamoto ended up in the hospital with a broken leg due to him attacking Kamoshida. So the attack that he did to Ryuji that day was really on purpose?! She felt sorry for Ryuji at this point, never realizing what he had lost because of that.

"Do you need me to deal with your other leg, too?" Kamoshida asked, "The school will call it self-defense anyway!"

Ryuji went onto his fists and knees, frustrated. "Dammit... Am I gonna lose again?" He asked, "Not only can I not run anymore, the track team is gone too 'cause of this asshole!"

"So that's why..." Morgana understood, only to get pressed into the ground again by Kamoshida.

"Once these two are dealt with, you're next." the false king snickered. Lioness couldn't take this abuse. She wanted to shout something, to charge down there and teach that guy a lesson.

"Are you gonna let him talk to you like that?" she heard Ren speak up, "You can't forgive him, right? Let's take back what's dear to you!" The words startled her, not realizing the conviction he had within himself.

Ryuji heard these words, finally seeing straight again. "You're right... Everything that was important to me was taken by him... I don't matter. My rep is already beyond repair. But they deserve to be in the sun again!"

Kamoshida laughed at this. "Struggle all you want, you'll never be anything more than scum who dragged his friends down!"

"No... that's what you are!" Ryuji growled, getting back on his feet again, "All you think about is using people... You're the real scumbag, Kamoshida!" He pointed his finger at Kamoshida, shouting, "Stop lookin' down on me with that stupid smile on your face!"

Suddenly, he heard a voice call out, **"You made me wait quite a while."** Ryuji suddenly felt a painful surge in his head, as his eyes became yellow. He fell to his knees, grasping his head.

"No way!" Lioness gasped, realizing what was happening to him.

 **"You seek power correct? Then let us form a pact."** The voice continued, as Ryuji writhed on the ground, **"Since your name has been disgraced already, why not hoist a flag and wreak havoc? The 'other you' who exists within desires it thus. I am thou, thou art I. There is no turning back. The skull of rebellion is your flag henceforth!"** When Ryuji recovered, he now had a gray, skull-shaped mask over his eyes, as he glared up at the enemies before him.

"What can you do?" The lead knight asked, "Cower in fear and watch!" He raised his sword, ready to cleave Ren.

Ryuji stood up, and ripped off the mask, taking his blood with it as he screamed in pain. Blue flames suddenly bursted like a tower from him, the shockwaves blowing away Kamoshida, the knight, and the Bicorns. Ren, Morgana, and Lioness all watched in amazement as the flames died down, as Ryuji stood there, in new garments, with his Persona behind him.

Ryuji donned the look of a punk, consisting of a matching black jacket and pants with knee pads, a red ascot, combat boots, and a pair of yellow gloves.

His Persona behind him was a skeletal-looking pirate, blue bony skin, red eyes, twin cutlasses and a belt across his chest, a worn and torn red cape tied around his neck, a cannon for one hand, and a hook for the other. It rode a small pirate ship like a surfboard, which had a painted grinning face like ones you would find on Spitfire planes.

After panting a few times, Ryuji straightened himself, grinning maliciously at the scared Kamoshida. "He...became a Persona-user!" Lioness gasped, amazed at this transformation.

"Right on... Wassup, Persona..." Ryuji stated, grinning as he looked at his hands, "This effin' rocks! Now that I got this power, it's time for payback. Yo, I'm ready. Bring it!" Ren and Morgana rose up as well, ready for another round with Kamoshida's Shadow and his knight.

"Don't mock me, you brat!" The lead knight shouted, transforming into his own Shadow form; a heavily-armored red knight, wielding a spear and riding on a horse; and Eligor.

"Blast him away... Captain Kidd!" Ryuji shouted, and his Persona fired off a blast of electricity from his cannon, blasting one of the Bicorns down, making it cripple.

"Come forth, Zorro!" Morgana shouted, calling his Persona out; a masked character with yellow cat eyes, a muscular body, a gray full-body suit and cape, and a rapier in one hand, which he drew a 'Z' upon summoning. It used its' powers to blast a gust of wind at the Eligor, making him flinch in pain. Meanwhile, Ren called forth Arsene, and his gentlemen thief Persona unleashed a slash with his chains, knocking the other Bicorn down.

"What troublemakers that bother King Kamoshida with trifle matters!" the Eligor barked.

"Kamoshida's cognition ain't changin', right?" Ryuji pointed out, "Then I'll act like the troublemaker I am!"

Lioness smirked at these words. _'You go, Ryuji. Maybe being a Persona-user might do you some good.'_ She then noticed the guards racing down the hallway she came from, and they grew in numbers. "Looks like it's my time to leave." She muttered, looking to the open window nearby, "I'll come back when I have a better idea on how to get through that locked door." She leapt onto the railing, leapt over to the windowsill, and snuck out of the castle, leaving the guards disgruntled that they failed to capture her.

At this point, Eligor felt limp as it was nearly down. "Let's finish this with an All-Out Attack!" Morgana shouted, and the three guys leapt into action, becoming three blurs that peppered the three quadrupeds. Ren landed on the ground, pulling the sleeves of his gloves as he smirked, and the three Shadows vanished from the collective damage they were done in with.

With them gone, all that was left was the trio of thieves, and Shadow Kamoshida. Ryuji was still recovering from his awakening to his new power, then panted, "How 'bout that?! Even if you apologize now, I ain't forgivin' you...!"

Shadow Kamoshida was composed as he stated, "I told you that this is my castle. It seems you still don't understand..." He turned to one side, and someone came to his side. Ren recognized her as the girl that the real Kamoshida picked up before, and now sat behind in class. However, she wore practically a black and magenta bikini attire, cat ears, and bright pink heels.

"Wha- Takamaki?!" Ryuji gasped, while Morgana seemed to swoon at her look, "What's going on...?!"

Takamaki clung onto Kamoshida's side as she stated, "You're the best, Mr. K! You should get rid of that trash, nya, nya!"

"Something seems off..." Ren noticed.

"Yeah, now that you mention it..." Ryuji muttered, "But why is she even here?! Let her go, you perv!"

"How many times must I tell you until you understand?" Kamoshida sneered, "This is MY castle; a place in which I can do whatever I want. Everyone wishes to be loved by me... That is, everyone besides slow-witted thieves like you."

"It seems that girl isn't the real one." Morgana understood, "She's the same as those slaves; a being made from Kamoshida's cognition of her!"

"Are you jealous?" Kamoshida sassed, "Well, I'm not surprised. Women aren't drawn to problematic punks like you."

Suddenly, the guards that pursued Lioness before started storming down the steps. "Clean them up, this instant!" The false king ordered, and the guards started storming down the steps.

"We have to run!" Ren declared, grabbing Ryuji wrist.

"Good call, rookie. Let's go!" Morgana shouted, and the trio ran as fast as they could from the knights that came after them. Ryuji wanted to stay, but saw the numerous amounts of enemies, and decided to run and live in order to fight another day.

They scrambled out of the hole they escaped from once before, and found themselves in the courtyard of the castle once again. Once they recovered, Ryuji started, "...Anyways... I don't remember changin' into this!" He looked down himself, examining his new look.

"It looks pretty good on you." Ren stated with a smirk.

"Uhh... Should I be happy about that?" Ryuji asked, "...Then again, it ain't as bad as yours."

They heard the guards, and kept their voices down for a moment, making sure they weren't heard. Once they were in the clear, Ryuji asked, "So what's goin' on? I'm completely lost, man!"

"I told you before; When a Persona-user opposes a Palace's ruler and becomes a threat to them, this happens. It's to prevent you from being affected by distortions."

Ryuji felt the mask over his eyes, and asked, "Is this... a skull?"

"Your appearance reflects your inner self. It's the rebel that slumbers within, not that you'll get it." Ryuji shook his head at Morgana, confirming his assumption. "Then stop asking questions, and accept that you see for what it is."

"Easy for you to say..." Ryuji muttered, then he gasped, "Crap! We're gonna be screwed with the Kamoshida back at school!"

"That's quite sharp of you...for being an idiot." Morgana scoffed, "Relax. The Kamoshida in reality can't possibly know about what happens here. I did explain that what we saw before was his Shadow; the true self that is suppressed."

"So...we're okay?" Ryuji asked.

"I think so..." Ren answered, "He didn't remember the execution when we escaped this castle before."

"Oh, right..." Ryuji recalled that time. He didn't know about the execution at all.

"There you have it." Morgana stated, "Now, I guided you as promised. It's your turn to cooperate with me." The boys looked confused as he continued, "That's why I was super nice about teaching you idiots everything. I originally came here for an investigation. I need to erase the distortion from my body and regain my real form! That's why we must delve deep into Mementos and-."

"Whoa, hold up." Ryuji stopped him, "What're you goin' on and on about? We never said anything about helpin' you out."

Morgana looked shocked as he gasped, "Don't tell me... Are you not going to repay the hospitality I showed you?" He looked to Ren, adding, "Especially you! You're going to up and leave, even though you're already part of my master plan?!"

"What master plan?" Ren echoed, "I don't even remember this promise."

"What... The nerve!" Morgana exclaimed, "Is it because I'm not human?" Because I'm like a cat? Is that why you're making a fool of me?!"

"We're busy." Ryuji answered, kneeling down to pet his head., "Thanks for everything, cat." You've got guts, bein' a cat and all! See you around!" With that, Ren and Ryuji ran away, leaving a gawking Mona to watch them leave.

"Hey!" He shouted, "What the hell?! Ugh, seriously! Why're you wrapping this up like everything's all hunky-dory?! Oh, hell no! Get back here!" He tried to pursue them, but Ren pulled out his phone, and used the app to leave the Metaverse once more, bringing him and Ryuji back to reality.

* * *

Back in reality, Guren, who left several minutes ahead of the boys, watched as Ryuji and Ren suddenly appeared in the alleyway, but she, herself, was hidden from view within the crowd of students. That were coming and leaving the school. _'Looks like they made it back in one piece.'_ She told herself, _'Still it is amazing. Amamiya and Sakamoto are both Persona-users. And...what's with that cat monster? I never saw anything like that guy in the Metaverse.'_ She looked down at her phone, seeing the search history on her Metaverse app, and seeing Kamoshida's name on the top part. _'Dammit! I can't believe I couldn't find a way to get deeper into his Palace! What's wrong with me?!'_

It was true that she had dealt with a few Palaces within the past year, maybe four or five of them. However, they were pretty minuscule in their defenses and puzzles to go further. Meaning their distorted desires were strong enough to form a Palace, but just barely. Itsuki, a year ago, was probably the one with the strongest Palace, and she had help on that part with Daichi. Kamoshida was probably on the same level as Itsuki, so while she had the experience of dealing with Palaces, there were certain parts she knew she wasn't as great with. Puzzles were something she wasn't completely skilled in dealing with.

She couldn't hear what Ryuji or Ren were talking about, but it looked like the former was pretty excited, like he finally was able to nail Kamoshida with something. _'Bet they don't even know that they could actually change his heart by going there.'_ She told herself, _'As I thought; A bunch of fledgling Persona-users. Did that cat creature even know?'_

"Hey, Guren." Greeted a voice from behind, followed by someone touching her shoulder. She jumped, so deep within thought, she wasn't thinking about her surroundings. Makoto had just come out of the school to greet her. "Whoa! It's only me!" She defended herself.

"Makoto!" Guren gasped, "Sorry... Got lost in thought there."

"I see..." her BFF replied, looking down at who she was looking at, "Is that Sakamoto-san, and Amamiya-san, the transfer student with a criminal record?"

"Yeah. Seems like the two hit it off since yesterday." Guren stated, "Not the best first friend to influence the vigilante living at my place, but it could be worse."

"Vigilante, huh? You make it sound like he had a criminal record for doing something noble."

"Well, considering I found out he was protecting a woman from a drunk man, and the drunk man sued him, causing Amamiya-san to get arrested... Yeah, I'd say he's a victim of a just cause."

Makoto smirked as she stated, "So, in other words, he's like you in some ways, huh?"

"Yeah, only my rep sheet is much deeper than his." Guren sighed, "I already warned him I won't be an easy person to befriend, so he's gonna have to earn my respect and prove he's a good person."

"You're making sure he knows how tough of a person you are before you allow him to see how kind you are." Makoto understood, "That's just like you, Guren." The two girls smiled at one another, realizing how much they knew about one another.

Guren then noticed the two boys walking away, intending to grab some food. "Looks like they're going somewhere." she noticed, "Better make sure it's not anything too troubling. I did tell Amamiya to go straight home before."

"Okay..." Makoto understood, "By the way, my schedule is free tomorrow after school. Wanna hang out together?"

"Sure. How about a little trip to the underground mall in Shibuya?"

"It's a deal." With that, the two ladies parted, going their separate ways; Makoto going back home, and Guren heading to the alleyway after the boys.

Once she was within range, she placed on her usual facade of a demeanor as she demanded, "And where do you think you two are going?"

Ren and Ryuji turned, the latter looking fearfully as the Shujin Jailbird approached them. "S-Sakura-san?! Wh-why are you here?!"

Guren ignored him and looked to Ren. "I thought I told you to go straight home. You really don't take orders very well, do you?"

"Lost track of time." Ren gave a false excuse, "I was hanging out with Ryuji, here. He was gonna take me somewhere to get something to eat."

"Oh?" Guren looked to Ryuji, who was pretty nervous, not looking her straight in the eyes, "And when did you start being on first-name terms?"

"S-Since I found out how much we both have a beef with Kamoshida." he stammered, "We're gonna work together to try to bring that guy down a peg, and make him pay for all the abuse he has done to the school."

"And how do you plan on doing that?"

Ryuji finally decided to look at Guren in the eyes as he stated, "We know he's been physically abusing the volleyball team members. We're gonna convince them to confess what Kamoshida has been doing to them, starting tomorrow!"

"Pointless..." Guren sighed, getting surprised looks from the two boys, "Kamoshida's influence on them is too powerful. They will never confess what is really going on. Unless you have any physical proof, that will never work."

Ryuji looked a bit hesitant, but he chose to stand his ground for the sake of the students. After what he had seen in the Palace, he wouldn't let this up. "You never know until you try! I will make sure that asshole gets what's coming to him!"

Guren looked to Ryuji, who was still scared of her, but he held his ground. She recalled what she heard in the Palace, and the pain that Kamoshida put Ryuji through. She felt sympathy towards him, but not enough to physically show on her face. She could see there was no way to convince him otherwise. And honestly, she had a beef with the PE teacher, too. That's why she intended to change his heart; To make him pay.

She looked to Ren as she recalled, "You were gonna go get something to eat, yeah?" He nodded in response. After a pause, she continued, "Fine, go ahead. I'll let Sojiro know what's going on. Don't be late coming home. It is a school night, and tomorrow is the volleyball rally." She passed the two boys as she finished, "I'd really hate to see that inflated ego of Kamoshida get any bigger, but I guess it is what it is." With that, she walked away from the two.

"Guess even she's got some hatred for Kamoshida as well." Ryuji understood, "But, she's probably a target for that asshole, what with her reputation at school. Still..." he grinned at Ren, "She did give you the okay to come with me. Guess she isn't all bad. Come on, I know this beef bowl restaurant in Shibuya. I wanna know all about you, man."

* * *

That night, when everyone went to bed, Ren found himself back behind bars in the Velvet Room. "I thought about resuming our previous conversation tonight." Igor started, "That is why I have summoned you. What are your thoughts? Are you becoming accustomed to this place?"

"I guess so, yeah." Ren answered. He was still weirded out by the abrupt summons to this place, but he did get use to the place, regardless.

"Ah, glad to hear it. It seems you have nerves of steel." Igor understood, "Your rehabilitation determines if ruin can be stopped. Yet, such a feat cannot be done by you alone. But today, you entered a partnership with someone who awoke to the same power, haven't you?"

"A partnership? You mean Ryuji?" Ren asked.

Igor nodded. "Involving yourself with others is an important foundation for your recovery. You've done well. That said, I am not advising the formation of superficial relationships. It must not be of frivolity, but a ring of those who would, by morals or faith, lend you their strength. In other words, they are bonds with those who have been robbed of their places to belong. The expansion of said ring will, in return, help you mature as well."

"Personas are the strength of heart..." Justine followed up, "The stronger the bonds that surround, you, the more power your Personas will gain."

"There are countless people in the city who have talents that a walking like you doesn't." Caroline pointed out, "You better rack that noggin of yours and get them on your side. We'll change that into power."

"Indeed." Igor agreed, "You should be prepared to use even myself, or your ambitions will not come to fruition." He chuckled as he finished, "We have a deal then."

Ren had a look that showed he was kinda confused by all this, so Igor continued, "Well, you will understand it all in due time... Continue devoting yourself to your rehabilitation."

"Now, this conversation's over! Get lost, Inmate!" Caroline ordered, whacking her baton against the bars of Ren's cell. The clang made him back off, and he started to lose consciousness once more.

* * *

 **April 13**

The routine of going to school was the same. Ren and Guren went together, neither one acknowledging knowing anything about Kamoshida's Palace. Ren believed Guren wouldn't believe in him, and that if he did tell her, it would be too dangerous. As for Guren, she was wanting to make sure she hit the Palace and steal the treasure within as soon as possible, before Ren and Ryuji figured out how to do that, and get themselves killed. It seemed that Haneru was the only oddball out in regards to the existence of the Palace. However, that would change in due time.

The volleyball rally was the main event during the school day, which cut into a lot of the class time. The teachers took on the students, meaning Kamoshida absolutely walloped the volleyball at them. All had their fair share, from Haneru to Guren, from Ryuji to Ren. All of them at least took one hit from the Olympic medalist. A second-year student named Mishima definitely took it worse when it was his time. In fact, it seemed like he was targeted all the time when he was on the field, resulting in him going to the nurse's office. Kamoshida looked sympathetic for the damage he did, but those who ventured into his Palace already knew that was a farce. He didn't feel sorry in the slightest.

That afternoon in school, Ryuji and Ren decided to go interrogate all the volleyball players who were abused by Kamoshida. Guren merely observed along the sidelines, watching their frivolous efforts to expose the PE Teacher's actions.

"Something bothering you, Sakura-san?" Haneru approached her as she watched the two boys trying to talk to two players, "Hey, I recognized them. They were in the alleyway when I noticed you vanished. I wanted to talk to you, then."

"What about?" Guren asked, her tone back to her stern self.

"Well... I don't know. Just wanted to talk, that's all." Haneru stated, "Do you like anime or video games?"

"Video games, not really." Guren answered, "As for anime, I like them, but I am more interested about the music and songs that came from them."

"Yeah, they are really great! I love so many of the openings and ending songs." Haneru stated, "I have an assortment of songs, both Japanese and American. Do you have any preferences?"

"Anything that I can play on the piano." Guren responded, watching Ryuji and Ren walking away when they got no help from the volleyball players.

"You play the piano?"

"Yeah. It's one of my favorite things to do in my spare time."

"That's cool. I enjoy dancing. Street-style dancing, actually." Guren grunted, not really paying attention to the conversation.

After a moment's pause, Haneru looked to see Ren and Ryuji split up to talk to different players. "Wonder what's with them?" He asked.

"They're trying to expose Kamoshida's physical abuse on his volleyball students. A fruitless effort, if I may add."

"Why's that?"

"Why do you care?" Guren asked, now getting irritated with Haneru's talking, "And for that matter, why are you still talking to me?"

"Sorry? I was just trying to be friendly." Haneru answered, slightly hurt, "Seeing as we're in the same class and everything."

"Don't tell me you're still in that whole 'fated encounter' thing you were blathering about before?"

"No! Not anymore!" Haneru answered, his hurt turning into retaliation, "Look, I get you don't like me at all, but you can at least be a little more nicer for a change. I'm at least someone who isn't avoiding you!"

These words triggered a part of Guren's anger. She turned and glared fiercely at Haneru, who backed away in fear. "And what is that suppose to mean, huh?"

"N-Nothing! Sorry, that just slipped-."

"You think I NEED someone to talk to me? Because I'm the Shujin Jailbird?!" Guren's raised voice got the attention of many of the students, including Makoto, who was coming out of the Student Council office, "You think I'm lonely or something? I'm fine, alright?! I don't need some blabbering otaku coming up and try to be friends with me! Everyone knows that I am constantly thrown in jail all for the wrong reasons, and they don't seem to mind avoiding me! So stop trying to 'be friendly with me', and leave me the heck alone!"

Haneru could tell he hit a nerve, and he was scared of Guren's demeanor at this moment. However, he wasn't gonna let this intimidation push him away. He was shaking, but he held his ground as he murmured, enough for Guren to hear, "Well, at least I'm making an effort, unlike you."

Guren popped a blood vessel, and was ready to really show him who to fear when Makoto shouted, "That's enough!" She confronted the two students, her arms crossed, and her expression stern. Guren gritted her teeth and backed off. Murmurs from the other students could be heard from all around, and Makoto knew this wasn't a place to talk. "In the Student Council room. The both of you." She ordered, pointing to the door.

Guren and Haneru looked to each other, and the irritated former scoffed as she walked to the room, with Haneru behind her, and Makoto bringing up the rear.

After they entered, Makoto wanted to know each of their stories as to how this fight started in the hallway. After each of them explained in their own words what happened, Makoto sighed in frustration. "Guren, I know you sometimes have a bad temper to things, but Haneru Kurosawa was only trying to be friendly with you. If you ask me, you overreacted to his actions."

"I did not overreact-!" She started angrily, but she caught herself, as she just proved Makoto's point.

"Kurosawa, you should've learned to watch your mouth on things." Makoto continued, looking to him, "I know you didn't mean any harm, but you did cross a line by telling Guren you were someone who wasn't avoiding her."

"I was just being honest." Haneru muttered, "I have been noticing all the people that have avoided even her gaze. I heard stuff about her having a long criminal record list, but I wasn't gonna let something like that stop me from trying to be friendly with her."

Makoto raised her eyebrows at this. "Oh? And why is her criminal record not stopping you?"

"Makoto, what are you-!" Guren started, but her BFF raised her palm to her to stop her, so she can get an answer from Haneru.

"It's just...well, I know I'm being an otaku again, but I'll say it: Sometimes criminals are misinterpreted by those in authority." Haneru explained, "Take a character named Luffy from an anime called 'One Piece'." Guren rolled her eyes at this example. Why, oh why was he going to make a fake character like that be an example.

"He's a pirate, and wants to be King of the Pirates, and yet all of the people he's beaten up were villainous pirates who wanted to do harm to the innocent, or corrupted Marine and World Government members who abuse their power and authority on civilians. And yet, he's pinned as a villain because he is a pirate."

"That is interesting, but where are you getting at?" Makoto asked.

"If you look at one side of the story, we don't really see that a character isn't as bad as those in power say they are. The ones who falsify the claims; they are bad people." Haneru explained, "I mean, take what happened when I was signing up for school. After being introduced to many teachers, that PE teacher, Kamoshida, told me to not be friends with Sakura-san, a guy named Sakamoto, and that new transfer student, Amamiya. But I don't see her as a bad person at all."

"Then how do you see me, hm?" Guren asked, her tone warning him not to cross the line, "Tell me what you are seeing, because I would like to hear your answer right now."

Haneru paused for a second, wanting to put the words in right. Finally, he answered, "I see someone who is labeled for all the wrong reasons, and is really a nice person. You showed me that when I first met you near your uncle's place." Guren thought back to when she first met Haneru and his mom in the backstreets of Yongen-Jaya.

Makoto smiled kindly at these words, as she could feel the honesty in his words, and understand them whole-heartedly. "Well, there you have it, Guren. Seems someone sees you in the same way I do. I think that's more than enough for you to give him a chance."

"Yeah, but-!" Guren started.

"And just to make sure you two get along well, I think the three of us should spend more time together when we have the opportunities." Makoto continued, "Kurosawa-san is actually a great student. He was actually doing his homework with me after school on his first day here. He's not just the otaku he claims to be. In fact..." she looked to Guren, "...I remember you wanting to go hang out at the diner in Shibuya Central Street with me. He can come with us, as long as that doesn't interfere with your plans for today."

"What plans?" Haneru asked, answering her statement.

"Then it's settled." Makoto stood up, "But first things first. Guren, apologize to Kurosawa for getting angry."

Guren was baffled. Her own best friend, and only friend at this school, was siding with this otaku transfer student instead of her?! Why was she doing this to her? And what was the point of being friends with him? There was no benefit to this whatsoever!

"Sakura!" Makoto used her friend's last name sternly, indicating she was serious, "Say you are sorry, and it better be honest."

Guren gritted her teeth for a second, then sighed. There was no way to argue with the Student Council President at this point. She stood up, turned to Haneru, and bowed to him. "I'm sorry for getting angry at you in the hallway." She told him.

"I accept your apology." Haneru replied, "I'm sorry I said some things I should not. I crossed the line." Guren didn't make any response, but she mentally acknowledge it.

"With that settled, let's meet up outside the front gate of the school, and head to the station together." Makoto told them, grabbing her backpack, and walking out the door. Guren looked to Haneru one last time, frustrated to work with such a character, before leaving to pursue Makoto, leaving Haneru to stand up from his seat, watching the girls leave.

"Well, that went well." Haneru sighed in relief, "Nijima-san is pretty amazing. And as for Sakura... She is a bit of a hard egg to crack, that's for sure. And yet, I feel drawn to her. Why is that?" He thought about it for a bit, then shrugged as he sighed, "Guess I'll just figure it out some other time."

Outside, Guren growled sarcastically, "Thanks SO much, Student Council Prez! Now thanks to you, our friendly time together after school is ruined because you invited that kid with us."

"I don't know what your problem is with him. He is an honest student, and a kind person."

"Yeah, but he is a blabbermouth, and talks about the most ridiculous things whenever I hear him! I mean, using an anime character as an example to get you on his side. What a load of-."

"Now that is enough, Guren." Makoto stopped her, "You have been getting a bit uptight recently, and I can't understand why. Are you angry you and I can't find time to get together as we use to?"

"No... Yes... I don't know!" Guren exclaimed, "I mean, I do miss our times together. I know I have been in jail less, and that's a great thing. But I already have enough on my plate with dealing with the OTHER transfer student, who now has partnered up with Sakamoto, and both have discovered-!" She stopped herself. She had almost went all the way to saying they learned of the Metaverse, and became Persona-users.

"They both discovered what?" Makoto asked, looking somewhat confused and concerned.

"...Nothing. Forget it." Guren sighed.

"Very well. I'll forget it as long as you try not to make a fuss about Kurosawa-san joining us to head to the diner."

Guren cared for Makoto like a sister would, but at times, she was just so meticulous in making sure she got Guren to do something she was firmly against. She swears this was something she inherited from Sae's prosecutor career. "...Fine..." she admitted defeat.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ryuji and Ren had no luck at finding someone to help them expose Kamoshida of his crimes. They were all too scared to give them an honest answer. They did hear about the scuffle between Haneru and Guren, though. Ryuji was pretty surprised anyone would stand up to Guren like that.

After school, Ren stopped by the courtyard to meet with Ryuji, who hadn't arrived yet. "Can I talk to you for a sec?" A girl's voice spoke up, and Ren turned to see the blonde-haired girl, Ann Takamaki, approach him.

"What is it?" He asked.

"It'll be quick." she assured him, then became serious as she started, "Anyway, what's with you? Like, how you were late the other day was a lie and all. There's that weird rumor about you too."

"Whaddya want with him?" Ryuji arrived on the scene, getting the two's attention.

"Right back at you. You're not even in our class." Ann pointed out.

"...We just happened to get to know each other." Ryuji hesitantly answered.

"What're you planning on doing to Mr. Kamoshida?" Ann questioned suspiciously.

"Huh?!" Ryuji started, then he formulated something in his mind, "I see, I get'cha. You're all buddy-buddy with Kamoshida after all."

"This has nothing to do with you, Sakamoto!" Ann barked at him.

"If you found out what he's been doin' behind your back, you'd dump him right away."

Ann seemed surprised by this as she echoed, "Behind my back? What's that suppose to mean?"

Ryuji looked to Ren, who shook his head at him. She wasn't suppose to know about the Metaverse, so there was no point in explaining it to her. He sighed as he answered, "You wouldn't get it."

"Anyway, people are already talking about you two." Ann warned them, "I don't know what you're trying to pull, but no one's gonna help you. I'm warning you, just in case. That's all." With that, she walked away from the pair.

Ren and Ryuji both had a flashback to what Guren warned them before. "Kamoshida's influence on them is too powerful. They will never confess what is really going on. Unless you have any physical proof, that will never work."

"Seems Guren was right about us not getting any help." Ren muttered.

Ryuji was ignorant to these words as he watched Ann leave. "Why's she gotta be so aggressive all the time...?"

"You act like you know her well." Ren pointed out.

"We just went to the same middle school." Ryuji answered, "Anyways, that's not what we're here to talk about. I had no luck on my end. What about you? Did anything like someone's name turn up?" Ren paused for a second. As a matter of fact, during his last conversation with one of the volleyball players, a name did come up.

"Mishima..." he answered, "I think that was the name I heard. Kamoshida was doing some 'special coaching' with that guy."

"Special 'coaching', huh?" Ryuji understood what that meant, "True, I always see the guy covered in bruises. Let's go talk to him before he leaves then."

The two left the courtyard, and made their way to the entrance, passing by Haneru as he exited the library. They caught the boy that got slammed before named Mishima about to walk out. "Hey, got a second?" Ryuji called him out, getting his attention.

"Sakamoto?!" Mishima gasped, seeing him, then noticing Ren and adding, "And you, too?!" Haneru arrived on the scene to watch whatever was gonna happen.

"C'mon, we're just here to chat." Ryuji assured him, though his expression said otherwise, "So, Kamoshida's been 'coaching' you, huh? You sure it's not just physical abuse?"

Mishima backed off from Ryuji as he stammered, "C-Certainly not!" His face, however, did show some signs of the falseness in his reply.

"What're you talkin' all polite for?" Ryuji asked, "Anyways, we saw him spike you today. Right in the face."

"That was just because I'm not good at the sport..." Mishima sheepishly defended.

"Still, that doesn't explain all the other bruises you've got." Ryuji pointed out, indicating all the injuries across his body.

"They're from practice!" Mishima forcefully stated.

"Is he forcin' you to keep quiet?" Ryuji asked, pressing him even further for information.

 _'Keep quiet?'_ Haneru thought to himself, _'What's going on here? Does Sakamoto know something about all this? Sakura did say that he and that other guy were trying to get info off of the volleyball players...'_

Before Mishima could answer, Kamoshida suddenly appeared on the scene. "What's going on here?" He asked the three boys, "Mishima, isn't it time for practice?"

Mishima looked scaredly away as he answered, "I-I'm not feeling well today..."

"What? Maybe you're better off quitting then." Kamoshida responded, causing Mishima to be surprised, "You're never going to improve that crappy form unless you show up to practice."

 _'Okay, disrespectful to his player's, and I even detected a bit of blackmail in that conversation.'_ Haneru noticed, his eyes narrowing, _'Maybe there's something to Sakamoto's accusations.'_

Ryuji got in between Mishima and the PE teacher, glaring at the latter as he growled, "Didn't you hear? He ain't feelin' well!"

Kamoshida ignored him as he looked to Mishima and asked, "Well, Mishima? Are you coming to practice or not?"

Mishima looked down in defeat as he answered, "I'll go." Ren, Ryuji and Haneru were all startled that he would just give in so easily.

Kamoshida looked down at Ryuji and hissed, "As for you, any more trouble and you'll be gone from this school for sure." Ryuji growled the word 'Bastard' under his breath, as the PE teacher looked to Ren and added, "Same goes for you. Didn't the principal tell you to stay in line?"

"I was just leaving." Ren answered, though his tone and expression said he was not happy with what was going on here.

"Hmph. Just don't get in the way of my practice." Kamoshida scoffed, "All these unsettling rumors are making the students anxious, after all."

"That's your own goddamn fault." Ryuji retorted angrily.

Haneru raised his eyebrows at this. Kamoshida was the one who was spreading rumors like that? Then again, he did recall on the first day of school how Guren told him that Kamoshida would do something like this just he found someone 'unworthy'.

"This won't get us anywhere. Let's go, Mishima." Kamoshida sighed, turning away from the boys, "Shujin Academy is a place where those with aspirations come to learn. Unworthy students like yourselves don't have any right to be here. Get with the program!"

"Yes, sir." Mishima answered, and Kamoshida made his way to the gymnasium.

"That asshole... He's gonna pay for this!" Ryuji growled.

"There's no point." Mishima retorted, "Proving that he's physically abusing us... is meaningless. Everybody knows. The principal, our parents... They all know, and they all keep quiet about it."

This bit of news shocked Ren, Ryuji and Haneru. "This has gotta be a joke..." Ryuji gasped.

"Don't be a pain. You don't understand what I'm going through." Mishima warned him, "Shouldn't you of all people know that nothing's going to help?!" This struck Ryuji hard in the core, as it was his fault for rebelling against Kamoshida that the track team was disbanded. This gave Mishima the opportunity to run away, going after the PE teacher.

Haneru watched Mishima leave, and heard Ryuji say he was gonna try and persuade the volleyball players again. Ren left for home, while Ryuji went to find the players again. _'This is seriously messed up!'_ Haneru told himself, _'I mean, the PE teacher is physically abusing his team, and no one of the right authority will do anything to stop him! Why will people just roll over for that guy?! ...Well, at least those two guys are trying. But it doesn't seem to be enough. What can be done here?'_

Suddenly, an inspiration came to mind. Haneru dug into his pocket, and pulled out his smartphone, particularly the app to the Metaverse. "I wonder..." he muttered, and he put in Kamoshida's name into the phone. "CANDIDATE FOUND." Haneru's eyes widened at this. "He has a Palace?!" He whispered in amazement, "This is perfect! I found a target!"

He looked all around, made sure no one was watching, or anyone was near him. It was a bit crowded inside, so he chose to step outside the doors, heading to the front gate of the school. "Alright, so we have a person who has a Palace; Kamoshida." Haneru continued, "Now where would his Palace be...? Maybe this school?" He typed in 'Shujin Academy'. "CANDIDATE FOUND." The phone answered, and he felt a slight distortion around him, signaling he was getting close. Some of the students around him paused, some feeling a bit of a headache.

Haneru looked around and saw what he did. "Maybe not the best place to use this app at the moment..." he told himself, looking at his phone, "Still, I do have an opportunity to go back into the Metaverse again. I got The 'who' and the 'where', but now I need to know how he sees the school as. What to do..."

"Kurosawa-san!" Haneru heard Makoto's voice as she and Guren were standing at the bottom of the steps, waiting for him. Guren looked a bit crossed, but she had no say in the matter anymore, thanks to her BFF.

"Oh, right. I have no other plans other than hanging out with them today." Haneru realized, "Guess I'd better save going to that guy's Palace later..." He pocketed his phone, and pursued down the steps to the girls, saying, "Sorry. Got held up at the library. Found that study guide you recommended to me, Nijima-san."

"It's no problem, but while we're out, you don't have to be formal with us." Makoto assured him, "Just call me 'Makoto', and her 'Guren'."

"Is that okay?" Haneru asked, looking to Guren, who looked away, not wanting to answer.

"Anyways, let's head to the station, and make our way to Shibuya." Makoto told the pair, and she walked ahead, with Haneru walking behind her, and Guren, pausing for a second, bringing up the rear.

* * *

Moment's later, the trio found themselves at the diner on Central Street in Shibuya. All of them ordered different things from the waitress; Guren got herself a cup of coffee, while Makoto and Haneru got herself a Frui-Tea.

"I didn't know you were interested in such a girly drink like that." Guren sassed at Haneru.

"Who cares, as long as it tastes good." Haneru retorted, taking a sip of the drink.

"So anyways..." Makoto stopped the argument before it started, "So you came from Toyota, right? What was your school like?"

"It was pretty normal, I guess." Haneru explained, "It wasn't as big as Shujin, but it was good place, and I got a great education there."

"What about friends?" Makoto asked.

"I didn't really have any." Haneru answered a bit crestfallen, "I'm not very good with normal talk. If it's about anime or video games, I end up getting a bit too over-the-top with my love for it. I was pretty much labeled a 'total otaku', and people just found me weird because of who I was."

"I can't imagine why..." Guren muttered, getting a punch in the shoulder by Makoto, which was surprisingly strong due to her hidden aikido skills.

"But I did have a friend in the apartment building I lived in." Haneru continued, "His name was Nikolo Hideyoshi, and is a pretty nice guy. He was the only one who could tolerate my otaku personality."

"Well, you do have an... eccentric personality at times." Makoto pointed out, "You certainly did display that during your introduction. But I can tell you are nice person, not to mention that you do take your homework seriously, from what I saw. Although, you did point out History was something you lacked in?"

"I am more interested in the history in fantasy worlds, rather than IRL history." Haneru explained, "I'm pretty well-versed in fictional history in certain games and anime, but I will only look into the history IRL if it has relationships to certain media I enjoy. I mean, that's how I understand a lot of the Warring States era of Japan, and even World War II in European history."

"So you aren't horrible at it, you're just selective on what to learn." Makoto understood, slightly bemused, "Well, I guess everyone has their faults."

"Says the A-grade student of Shujin Academy." Guren pointed out, smirking at her, "There doesn't seem to be a subject that you can't conquer. Not to mention you're the only one I know who gets excited when a new study guide book appears on the shelves at a bookstore."

Makoto blushed horribly at this, as it was true, but she retorted, "Well, you're one to talk. Last I checked, you were getting incredible grades, yourself.

"All because I hang around you a lot." her BFF pointed out.

Seeing as this would go nowhere, Makoto changed the subject as she asked, "S-So, what do you think of our school in compared to your old one?"

"Not too big of a difference." Haneru answered, "I mean, I'm still new to the place, but I have nothing to complain about...well, except for that PE teacher, Kamoshida." The name drew the attention of Guren for sure.

"What about him do you not like?" Makoto asked, her tone a little skeptic.

"Pretty much his whole demeanor." The otaku boy answered, "I mean, when I met him the first time, he told me to avoid being friends with Guren and a couple other students. He acts all high and mighty, and I even heard recently that he's been abusing the volleyball team physically. How the hell can a teacher get away with something like that?"

Makoto had an uncomfortable expression on her face as Guren explained, "Well, he is an Olympic medalist. He's one of the reasons Shujin Academy is recognized. All of the teachers and parents idolize him for his reputation, and that gives him the right to do whatever he wants, apparently. Pretty stupid, if you ask me."

Haneru looked to Makoto in bewilderment as he exclaimed, "But that's just wrong! Haven't you tried to stop him from hurting the students? I'm not blind enough to see the injuries on the volleyball players, and neither is anyone else. Surely, as the Student Council President, you have heard complaints or even looked into these things."

"I..." Makoto looked really hesitant, "I...I need to use the restroom. I'm sorry." She stood up and walked away, going to the bathroom.

"You really are straight to the point." Guren growled at Haneru, "Way to go, idiot."

"What? Was it wrong to point this out? And why is she uncomfortable with this?"

"Because she HAS looked into this a few times. However, her accusations have all been shot down, and there is no actual physical or verbal proof that would get Kamoshida fired. Even if their was, it is usually tossed away due to the level of authority and reputation Kamoshida has."

"A PE teacher like him has that much authority in a high school like that?" Haneru asked, baffled, "He's hurting students physically. He's shunning students away from people like you and that other transfer student because of your reputation. And all because he won a stupid gold medal? It's not that huge of a deal!"

"I agree. There's just no way to justify what he has been doing." Guren stated, "However, he's become an idol to so many, and he knows it. He's in love with the reputation he has at school, and there's no way he's gonna stop doing all those cruel things, or even confess to them. Not unless a miracle happens..." she then mentally added, '...Or if he has a change of heart.'

Haneru looked down, particularly at his phone. A miracle, she say? Well, it was a good thing he had an app for that. One that'll allow him to change the heart of a cruel monster like Kamoshida.

"Look, just drop it, okay?" Guren told him, getting his attention, "When she comes back, let's change the subject. And for goodness sake, please try to watch what you say!"

"Okay..." Haneru understood, "But it's hard to sometimes judge whether what I say is wrong or not, alright?"

"Then I'll kick you under the table if you start going somewhere that might not be right."

Makoto returned to the table again, saying, "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to leave abruptly."

"No, it's my fault for bringing that up." Haneru understood, "I know it must be hard being a Student Council President, right?"

"I'm not too bothered by the task." she replied, "Although, it does keep me from hanging out with Guren as much as I want to."

"Well, don't worry about it." Guren assured her, "If you need an extra hand, I'll be here to help you out."

"I can help however I can. Ouch!" Haneru got a kick to the shin by Guren at this statement, "Why did you kick me?! That wasn't necessary. Ouch!"

"Then stop talking. I can take care of being an extra hand for Makoto, not you."

"That's not your call to make. It's mine." Makoto retorted, glaring at Guren before smiling at Haneru, "I appreciate the offer. I'll take it when I need it, okay?" Haneru smiled and nodded in response.

For the next half hour, they spent a good time talking, getting to know each other and telling stories about stuff. However, in the back of both Haneru and Guren's minds, they settled on one thing. Whether it was for the school or the student. Whether it was to ease Makoto's troubles or prevent Ren from getting into trouble. Whether it was a necessity or a thrill, both of them agreed unconsciously on one thing.

 _'I am going to steal Kamoshida's Treasure, and change his heart.'_

* * *

 **Next Time:**

 **Unite the Phantom Thieves!**


	10. Unite the Phantom Thieves!

**April 13**

"My God..." Mia was looking at Haneru's phone, which he held up, presenting to her what he discovered after school on the Metaverse app.

It was evening, and once mother and son settled down to have dinner, Haneru explained to mom about what happened at school, from what Makoto Niijima decided for him and Guren Sakura in order to be good friends, to what he overheard from Kamoshida, to what he learned about all the IRL attempts to stopping him. However, he saved the best for last by showing her that Kamoshida had a Palace, according to the app.

"So Kamoshida owns a Palace, and has been causing physical abuse to his students." Mia summed up, "And many people know about this, and won't stop him?!"

"That's the long and short of it." Haneru answered, looking at his smartphone, "I got the person's name and the location of the Palace. Now, I need to know the cognition... Maybe a palace like Oda's?" He typed it in, but he got 'CANDIDATE NOT FOUND'.

"Remember, every person's mind thinks a different way." Mia explained, "This means Kamoshida thinks of the school differently like Oda's. You might need to think about what he is like and how he acts at school. It might give you some clues."

"How he acts..." Haneru pondered on what he knew about Kamoshida. He was praised for being an Olympic medalist, to the point that parents and even the principal let him get away with things. He executed punishment onto the students without retaliation. He made sure those who weren't worthy to be in the school were exiled by other students. His whole demeanor made him act like a royal snob. A person who rules the school like a king.

"A king..." Haneru vocalized his thoughts, "If he thinks he's a king, then maybe he thinks of the school as..."

"A castle." Both he and his mom answered simultaneously. The air distorted around them as the word 'castle' was placed into the phone, along with the voice saying, "CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN FOUND."

"We got it!" Haneru gasped, and his mouth formed a grin, "Now we can access his Palace!"

"Hold on a moment." Mia stopped him, "We may have access to his Palace, but that doesn't mean we should just jump in just yet. We have to be prepared for what's in there, not to mention that I will be busy for the next few days, so I won't be able to join with you into the Palace."

Haneru sighed, acknowledging this. Still, an idea occurred to him as he asked, "Maybe...I can scout the place beforehand? You know, just to see what we're dealing with?"

Mia looked to her son, knowing full well he wanted to go into the Metaverse really badly. She knew that even if she said no, he would do it anyway. "If it's just to scout the place out, I am fine with it." She answered, "But don't do anything reckless, alright? Remember the couple of times you went and almost got killed in Oda's Palace."

"Right..." Haneru acknowledged, recalling those painful memories, "Best keep it safe and be on stealth tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?!" Mia echoed, surprised, "You're planning to go there that soon?"

"Yeah. After school." Haneru answered, "Gotta strike while the kettle is hot. Though I fail to wonder why that became a saying... Oh, well. I'll look that up on the internet." With that, he brought his plate over to the sink, washed it, and placed it on the towel to dry. "I'd better get an early shuteye tonight if I'm to get back into the swing of things." He decided, and he went into his room.

"He's really serious about going back to the Metaverse..." Mia noticed, a bit surprised at first. However, she smiled as she pointed out, "Then again, it's not like his father was any different." She looked at the wall calendar on the kitchen wall. "Tomorrow's the fourteenth, and a Thursday. I'm pretty sure I can get some time off on Sunday and Monday next week, if I ask. That could be the moment we strike at Kamoshida's Palace." Let's just hope I can do that, or at least get off early so I can help my son."

Inside Haneru's room, he decided to pull out any necessities he needed for the scouting mission tomorrow. That included his Polaroid camera and some medicine. He had his crossbow ready for him in the Metaverse, so there was no need for him to be worried about carrying that around in school.

His mom told him that due to their new powers, they are able to summon their firearms and weapons in the Metaverse without dragging them about IRL, but they could bring the weapons with them IRL to exchange at certain weapon shops. Why and how? Not even she knew.

With his backpack ready, he went back to bed, but realized that he would probably not sleep due to the level of excitement he had. However, he had a remedy that he would use now and again; a sleeping pill. He took it and almost immediately went to sleep afterwards.

* * *

 **April 14**

The next morning, many of the students on the way to school were talking about how awesome Kamoshida was at the volleyball rally. Those who didn't give a crap, mainly Ren, Ryuji, Guren and Haneru, were listening to this praise with disgust in their hearts. They were gonna show them the true scumbag he really was.

School went by like normal, apart from Ryuji trying and failing to get people to help against Kamoshida. He did text Ren in class, asking if maybe he should look into talking with Ann, or at least follow her to see if she knew anything about Kamoshida's actions.

After school, in the courtyard, Ann was sitting down with a good friend of her's, Shiho Suzui. She was a brown-haired girl, styled in a ponytail, and she was covered in bruises. After all, she was part of the volleyball team, as well.

"Shouldn't you be heading to volleyball?" Ann asked her. Shiho made a noise of acknowledgment, though her face was that of depression. Ann saw her face, which looked sad, but she also noticed a new injury. "That bruise above your eye... Is that from practice, too?" She asked hesitantly.

"Y-Yeah..." Shiho lied. It was actually from something else Kamoshida did to her.

Ann could feel something was off, but she asked, "Are you sure you're not pushing yourself too hard?"

"I'm okay..." Shiho assured her, "Volleyball's the only thing I can do right." She heard Ann's phone ring, and asked, "Shouldn't you take that?"

"It's probably just my part-time job... I think." Ann answered.

"I... should get going." Shiho told her, about to stand up.

Ann placed a hand on her shoulder, giving off a worried expression as she asked, "Shiho, are you sure you're okay?" Her friend gave another sound of acknowledgement, though it felt forced. Still, she stood up and walked away.

Ann stood up and watched her leave for a second, then dug into her pocket and pulled out her phone. "Yes?" She asked. She listened to who it was, and responded, "Today won't work... I'm... I'm not feeling so good... Sorry. Bye."

She walked away from the courtyard, hearing two boys pass by her, noticing her and pointing out how she was Kamoshida's girlfriend. Every time she heard that, or something worse that she was called, she couldn't help but feel sick to her stomach. This was not a label she wanted at all. She hated the man who was 'dating' her.

* * *

While this scenario happened, Haneru had left class immediately it was done, and searched for a place to go into the Metaverse discreetly. He decided the alleyway where he saw Guren disappear to before would be the best option. "Let's see here..." he muttered, looking at his Metaverse app, and pulling out the set of words he discovered last night. "I really hope this works." He told himself, and he activated the app.

"BEGINNING NAVIGATION." The area around him started to become distorted as he looked about. Suddenly, he found himself, like the trio before him, at the castle which replaced Shujin Academy.

"I made it back..." he muttered, looking up at the castle, "Mom was right. This place really is different from Oda's Palace..."

He looked down himself, and saw he was in his Phantom thief attire. "Looks like I still got the look here, too." Haneru, now Kong, noticed, "Just to make sure I have everything. Quarter staff with hidden blades...?" He produced the said weapon, twisting the two ends to reveal the twin blades within.

"Check." He confirmed, "Crossbow...?" He placed one weapon away for the other, aiming it forward, resting the shaft of the crossbow on his arm, making sure he had ammo.

"Check." He confirmed again, "Medicine and Polaroid camera?" He produced the said equipment he had in his backpack before, looking through the lens of the camera, and taking a quick snap of the castle. He shook the picture that came out so it became visible, seeing that it worked.

"Check." He confirmed, "And finally, my Persona..." He whipped off his mask, producing Sasuke in front of him. "Looks like I'm ready to go." He declared, "You ready, buddy?" Sasuke nodded in confirmation. Kong smirked at him as he vanished and became his mask again.

"Right, now first things first..." he looked about, and saw the hole where all the other thieves of Kamoshida's Palace have entered and exited. "Perfect. Just what I was looking for." He told himself, "Time to infiltrate the Palace!"

He entered into the hole, finding himself in the dark room it led to. He then exited it and went down the hallway, hiding himself as knights passed by him. ' _Seems like the Shadows here are medieval knights instead of Warring State era soldiers.'_ Kong told himself, ' _Well, then again, I am in a castle, so what should I expect?'_ He crept past the knights, darting along the path.

Kong investigated all around the area, from what looked like a storage facility, to a mess hall. He ended up discovering a place where the cognition was weak, so he decided to make sure to memorize where this place was. "Right then, let's see where I should go next..." he started.

Suddenly, he heard clanking footsteps as he heard one of the knights outside call out, "We must go to King Kamoshida! We must gather to him so we'd be led to the church!"

"Church?" Kong echoed, "Wonder what that's all about? Is Kamoshida a Christian?" He peeked outside the safe room, and saw no one there. He decided to take a chance and follow the knights, wanting to see both Kamoshida and this 'church' in his Palace.

He found himself standing in the shadows at a doorway, looking into the Central Hall of the castle, where Kamoshida's Shadow stood on the balcony above, with a dozen soldiers down below. ' _So that's Kamoshida's Shadow...'_ Kong noticed, ' _Gods, I really thought Oda's Shadow was flamboyant. This guy's look is just disturbing.'_

"How is the security within my castle?!" He demanded a lead knight.

"Security is tight! We will make sure no more of those intruders will enter into your castle, m'lord!"

This bit of news surprised Kong. Intruders? What were they talking about?

"Good. I despise those thieves who come and go in my castle as they please." Kamoshida's Shadow growled, "Now, let us make our way to the church."

"Praise Kamoshida's name!" The knights declared, thrusting their swords to him in salute.

' _Oh... It's to praise his own name.'_ Kong understood with a sweat-dropped expression, ' _Why am I not surprised a narcissist like him wasn't a Christian?'_

"Once I am done there, I'll be sure to torture some of my prisoners down in the cells." Kamoshida added, "Course, that has become quite boring recently. Maybe I'll just play with Ann for a while, instead..."

Kong wondered who these prisoners were, and swore he heard the name 'Ann' somewhere. Then it occurred to him; He had heard rumors that a girl named Ann Takamaki, a second-year student, was Kamoshida's girlfriend. The thought of a student and teacher being a couple in that sense was a bit queasy. Sure, he watched relationships like that in anime, but real life versions were just a bit too weird for his taste.

' _Best get a photo of that guy before I leave.'_ Kong stated, pulling out his Polaroid camera, ' _Wanna show mom what we're dealing with...'_ He readied the camera as he aimed the lens at Kamoshida. He made sure to get a good focus on him, and took a snap. Unfortunately for him, he had forgotten to turn off the flash, and that blew his cover.

Kamoshida's Shadow, along with all the knights, turned at the sight of the flash. "Who's there?!" Kamoshida demanded.

"Darn it! The flash!" Kong grunted, looking at the camera as the photo came out. He shook the picture to make it appear, but he was already seen.

"Another thief has entered into my castle?!" Kamoshida demanded, "I thought my security was tightened!"

"Guess it wasn't good enough..." Kong chuckled, stepping into the room, "And what do you mean by 'another thief'? Am I not the first to enter your Palace?"

Kamoshida ignored this as he ordered, "Guards! Take care of this intruder, now!" Three of the guards approached Kong, transforming into their Shadow forms; an Incubus and two Silky.

Kong grinned as he stated, "Time to get back into the saddle, and slay some Shadows!" He declared, "Sasuke, let's go!" He summoned his Persona to the field, and unleashed lightning bolts at the two Silky, crippling them. The Incubus avoided the attack and flew at the phantom thief, ready to slash him with its' claws. He avoided the attack by stepping back, then summoned his crossbow, saying, "Smile!" And fired a shot at the Shadow's chest, making it fall as well.

"Now, to finish the job!" Kong declared, summoning his quarterstaff, and charging at the Incubus, whacking it at the two Silky who tried to rise back up. They got toppled over again, and Kong pulled out his hidden blades. "Sasuke, with me!" He shouted, and his Persona followed him, readying its' blade. With slashes from each of them, they destroyed the Shadows.

"Man, did I miss this!" Kong cheered, sheathing his blades and saddling his quarterstaff, "God, I am so happy to do some butt-kicking!"

"You look familiar..." Kamoshida muttered, examining Kong's face as his Shadow reverted to a mask, "...Oh, now I remember. You're that idiotic transfer student who disobeyed my orders to be around the Shujin Jailbird. Worthless little lowlifes like her are better off in jail with the key thrown away."

"How could you say that about one of your own students?!" Kong demanded, "You don't even know what she has been through!"

"Oh, I do know." Kamoshida scoffed, "The people who bail her out of jail and keep her at my school are just as foolish as her! If the Student Council President wasn't so well liked by the principal, and if she wasn't excused for her grades, I would've expelled her without hesitation. She is nothing but trash who deserves to be swept under the rug!"

"Guren is not trash! Stop saying crap like that!" Kong retorted angrily, "She's not the one abusing the volleyball team for the sake of lashing out at someone! You are making a bad example by not being a proper teacher to the students!"

"Why should a king stoop down to a level such as yourself?! People love me for my achievements!" Kamoshida stated with a smirk, "I am praised for making a name for the school, and for leading the volleyball team to victory! Anyone who is in the way of my glory is just a nuisance, like all those other brats who were unworthy to step into my castle!"

Again, Kong heard him say something about 'other intruders'. Could this mean that there was another person or a group of people who could enter into his Palace? Who could they be?

"Now, I shall execute you, here and now!" Kamoshida barked, thrusting a finger at Kong, "Guards, kill this piece of trash!"

Two of the knights came at him turning into a Berith and a Succubus as they did so. Kong narrowly got skewered by the Berith as he pulled out his crossbow, and fired at the Succubus, knocking her to the ground.

"Gotta have a distraction..." he muttered as the other knights came at him. He saw the Berith, and came up with a mischievous idea. "Sasuke! Boggle the Berith's brain!" He ordered, and he summoned his Persona, who unleashed an attack that consumed the Berith, causing it to be brainwashed. It turned and charged at the knights, knocking them over, startling Kamoshida and the rest.

"Sorry, but I ain't dying today." Kong told them, "I just came to scout the place. But don't worry, you'll have another fruitless attempt at trying to kill me later. But I will be stealing your Treasure before that happens! Later!"

He turned and ran back the way he came, with some of the knights dealing with their brainwashed comrade, while others chased after Kong. However, he was too fast for them, and manage to scramble back outside through the hole he came in from before, and exited the Metaverse.

* * *

Back in the courtyard, Ren met up with Ryuji as the latter growled, "Dammit, what the hell..."

"I take it you didn't find anyone?" Ren asked.

"Is that what it looks like?" Ryuji grumbled sarcastically, slamming his fist into the vending machine, "All of 'em kept saying' the same shit Mishima was talkin' about! Kamoshida had to have told 'em something! At this rate, it looks like we'll have to go to him directly."

"You know there's no point..." Ren pointed out.

"I know..." Ryuji sighed, "But seriously, isn't there something we can do? No way I'm gonna give in like this! Can you think of anything?"

Ren thought about it for a moment. If they told the cops about the castle where they saw the abuse in person, they would never believe them. If they tried to perform a sneak attack on the real Kamoshida, it would be no use. There was one idea that could work. "Let's punish the king." He suggested.

"The king? You mean that other world's Kamoshida?" Ryuji asked, kinda surprised at that idea, "I didn't think of that, but... Is there any meaning to-."

"I finally found you!" A familiar voice called out to the two boys, who looked around, wondering where it came from. Suddenly, a black and white cat with a yellow collar and blue eyes hopped on the table between them, saying, "Don't think you can get away with not paying me back for helping you."

"That voice... Is that you, Morgana?!" Ryuji asked, shocked and amazed.

The cat, Morgana, shook his head as he answered, "How dare you, up and leaving me the other day!"

"The cat's talkin'?!" The blonde-haired boy exclaimed.

"I am NOT a cat!" Morgana hissed, "This is just what happened when I came to this world! It was a lot of trouble finding you two."

"Wait... You came to our world?" Ryuji gasped, "Does that mean you've got a phone?!"

"You don't need one when you're at my level." Morgana answered, "I did get pretty lost making my escape though..."

"That asked, why can you talk?!" Ryuji asked, "You're a cat!"

"How should I know?!" Morgana answered, "In any case, you guys are having a rough time of this, hm? I heard you mention something about witnesses. You know, I could tell you a thing or two about what to do about Kamoshida. You were pretty close just a moment ago."

"God, that condescendin' attitude!" Ryuji scoffed, "This thing's gotta be Morgana!"

"You were still doubting me?!" The cat demanded.

At this point, they heard a couple of the teachers a good distance away in the courtyard, who were talking about looking for a cat. They said they heard a meow, but no sign that they heard an actual cat talking.

"Meow? Does that mean only us two can understand what you're sayin'?" Ryuji asked.

"Looks like it." Morgana answered.

...Actually, this was not true, as hiding away from the view of the pair, standing in the grass just outside the area the three were talking, was Guren, who was puzzled and amazed. She was just going to find Ren when she passed by the said cat, who said, "Watch it!" After nearly being stepped on. This was really surprising to Guren, and decided to follow the cat. Turns out, it was that same cat creature she saw with Ryuji and Ren in the Metaverse. She didn't understand anything yet, but guessed that due to going to the Metaverse, they could hear and understand Morgana.

"Anyways, what you were talkin' about earlier. Is it for real?" Ryuji asked.

"You're quite the skeptic for being an idiot." Morgana sighed.

"Hey, tell us more. Then again, this probably ain't the best place." Ryuji pointed out, grabbing the scruff of Morgana's collar and handing him to Ren, "Here, stick it in your bag for now! It should be just small enough to fit!" Despite the cat's complaints, Ren took him and shoved him into his backpack, and the two raced off, mentioning something about heading to the rooftop.

Guren watched them leave, then looked at her smartphone clock. "Best get back. I promised Sojiro I'd bring in customers with my piano." She adjusted her backpack, and made her way towards the entrance of the school.

* * *

At this point, Haneru reappeared in reality again, looking about. No one noticed him appear, so he seemed to be in the clear. "Still, that was pretty close for comfort." He pointed out, looking at his Metaverse app, "I'd best wait for an opportunity to rise up so I can return and scout deeper into the Palace."

He pulled out the photos he took with his Polaroid. Fortunately, due to it not being a digital camera, the photos were intact, meaning he got a good photo of the castle, and of Shadow Kamoshida. "Won't mom be intrigued by these things." He told himself, smirking, "Best be on my way home."

He turned and left down the alleyway, just as Guren reached the front gate. She noticed Haneru leaving, but decided to avoid him. She still wasn't planning to spend as much time with him as Makoto would want her to, so she chose to avoid him whenever she could. She took a different path to the station, making her way home.

* * *

Up on the rooftop, Morgana had just been pulled out of Ren's backpack, screaming, "Don't be so rough with me!"

"Enough of that!" Ryuji said exasperatedly, "You said you know how we can do something about Kamoshida, right?"

"It has to do with what this guy was talking about earlier." Morgana looked to Ren, "You'll need to attack his castle. That castle is how Kamoshida views this school. He doesn't realize what happens in there, but it's deeply connected to the depths of his heart. Thus, if the castle disappears, it would naturally impact the real Kamoshida."

"What would happen?" Ren asked.

"A Palace is a manifestation of a person's distorted desires. So, if that castle were no more..."

"His desires would go, too?" Ren finished.

"Precisely!" Morgana answered, "You sure can pick up things fast."

"For real?!" Ryuji questioned, "He's gonna turn good?! But... Is that really gettin' back at him?"

"Erasing a Palace essentially means forcing the owner to have a change of heart. However, even though their warped wants disappear, the crimes they committed remain. Kamoshida will become unable to bear the weight of those crimes, and he'll confess them himself! And since hte Palace will no longer exist, he'll forget what we did there as well."

Ren and Ryuji looked shocked an amazed. The idea that this was a possible way to do things was unheard of to either one of them. Not only could they get an actual confession from the horse's mouth, but the actions they perform that allow this to happen will not be noticed by Kamoshida. They can finally get what they wanted.

"That's amazing! You are one incredible cat!" Ryuji praised.

"True, except for the cat part!" Morgana hissed.

"So? How do we get rid of the Palace?" Ryuji asked.

"By stealing the Treasure held within." The cat answered, and after getting confused looks from the two boys, he added, "I'll tell you more once you agree to go ahead with this. It's my most valuable, secret plan, after all. If you want to help me out, I'll gladly teach you. What's your call?"

Ren and Ryuji looked at one another for a moment, then the latter stated, "Our luck's runnin' dry lookin' for witnesses. Guess we have no choice but to go along.

"You're right. There's no other choice..." Ren agreed.

"Good." Morgana stated with a smirk, then he added, "Oh, right. There's one more thing I should tell you. If we erase a Palace, there is no doubt that the person's distorted desires will be erased as well. But desires are what we all need in order to survive. The will to sleep, eat, fall in love; those sorts of things."

"What're you gettin' at?" Ryuji asked.

"If all of those yearnings were to vanish, they'd be no different than someone who has shut down entirely. They may even die if they're not given proper care. So..."

"They might die?!" Ryuji gasped, both he and Ren shocked to hear this piece of info, "Would their death be our fault?!"

"Aren't you determined enough to face those kinds of risks?" Morgana asked.

"We have to." Ren answered, getting Ryuji attention, "I don't want to kill him, but I don't want to let things go like this. Plus, we have no other option at this point. We have to risk it." Ryuji looked baffled at Ren's response.

"Sheesh. I come all this way, and this is what I get." Morgana sighed, seeing the blonde boy's reaction, "It's not like anyone will ever find out."

"That's not the point!" Ryuji retorted, "If we just go around secretly doin' whatever we want, we'd be no better than that effin' Kamoshida!"

"But it is as frizzy-hair says; Isn't this your only option?" Morgana asked, "I'll come back later. Make sure you've made your decision by then." With that, he walked away from the pair, going down a series of platforms outside the school.

For a while, Ren and Ryuji didn't say anything. Finally, Ren stomped his foot, growling, "Man, we're gettin' all worked up for nothing... Dammit! I'll try to see if there is another way. C'mon, let's get outta here." Ryuji left Ren behind, leaving the door open for him. Ren took his time, thinking about what Morgana told them, then left the place.

* * *

Things were fine for Ren, right until he made it to Shibuya to transfer subway lines. He was just leaving as he recognized the platinum-blonde twintails of Ann Takamaki, hiding herself close to the wall, talking on the phone. The emotion she was displaying on her face was distraught.

"Will you please give it a rest?!" She barked, "I told you, I'm not feeling up to it..." She listened to the person on the phone, who was obviously Kamoshida, and her eyes went into shock. "Wait, what?! You'll cut Shiho as a starter?! That's not what you promised! And you call yourself a teacher?!" The phone on the other side hung up on her, causing her to look at it exasperatedly.

She then went from shock to mournful as she crouched down, curling herself into a ball. "Shiho..." she muttered, looking at her phone. She wanted to call her best friend, but was afraid to tell her what had happened. What she tried to prevent from doing.

Ann then noticed she was being watched, and looked up. Ren was standing there, having heard everything. "Wait... Were you listening?!" She demanded.

"N-Not on purpose." Ren defended.

"Haven't you heard of privacy? Eavesdropping is creepy!" Ann glared at him for a moment, then sighed, "No, I was out of line. Sorry..." She took another pause, then asked, "You heard everything, didn't you?" Ren looked down, feeling guilty. That was all she needed to see to know she was right. Tears formed in her eyes, showing her worry for her dearest friend.

"You...want to talk about it?" Ren asked, "We can go somewhere safe." Ann looked surprised at this request, then wiped the tears off of her face as she stated, "What the heck? I really don't get you..." However, she complied, and they walked off together.

After a few minutes, the two found themselves at the burger chain, Big Bang Burger, in Central Street. Ann was playing with the straw of her drink, wondering what to say to this boy with a criminal record. She didn't want to say anything to him at first, so Ren decided to start things off, knowing what she was arguing to.

"So...was that Kamoshida you were arguing with?" he asked.

Ann paused, then she answered, "Pretty straight to the point, aren't you...?" She sighed, then continued, "You heard about the rumors, right? About Kamoshida? People say we're getting it on, and...I can't blame them. It looks that way. But...it's so not true." She crushed the straw with a single finger, her inner anger coming forth a bit.

"It started a while back. He knew Shiho and I were friends. He saw me and made a proposal. He told me 'Shiho's too kind and emotional. So she couldn't possibly handle the pressure of being on the team.' He said he would have to cut her off as a regular on the team, but he would consider against it if I would help him learn more about Shiho. He told me it was for 'Shiho's sake', so I couldn't refuse. As time went on, however, he became bolder. When you were hearing me, he wanted me to come to his place after my last shoot... Well, you know what he meant."

There was a pause, as tears fell from her face. "I can't take this anymore. I hate him!" She sobbed, "But still, Shiho's my best friend. She's all I have left at that sorry excuse for a school!" She covered her face with her hands, sobbing, "What should I do? What should I do? Someone, please give me an answer..."

Ren could only stay silent and hear her sob. He gripped his pants tightly, and his fingertips could've broken through the stitches. But still, he could tell her what he could do. What he was told by Morgana.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Ann finally said, wiping away her tears, "It's not your problem." She paused as she calmed herself down, then she asked, "What...am I saying? I've barely even talked to you before."

"It's fine." he assured her.

Ann looked up at him for a second, then stated, "You're so weird. Usually everyone just ignores me. Are you really a bad person as the rumor says? You just don't seem like it..."

"Rumors?" Ren asked, recalling the many times people knew him as the boy with a criminal record, "Well, I can't say anything about the rumors, but I do have a criminal record."

"Well, they did say you assaulted someone. Nearly killed them, too..." Ann recalled, "I kinda had a feeling they were all just exaggerations. You seemed lonely, almost like you didn't belong anywhere. We're the same in that regard. Maybe that's why it was so easy for me to talk to you." She looked down at her hands, wondering, "Is there really no way for me to save Shiho? I'd wish he'd just change his mind. Like, forget about me, and everything... As if something like that would ever happen..."

"I could happen." Ren spoke this without missing a beat.

Ann looked surprised at first, then chuckled a bit. "I wasn't asking for a serious response. But I do feel a bit better now. I'm gonna head home." She stood up and took her backpack, adding, "Don't tell anyone what I told you, OK? I'll try to think of a way to persuade Kamoshida."

She walked away from Ren, who's eyes were hidden by the reflection in his glasses. However, when he looked up, he had an expression that he had displayed to Kamoshida, both the one in the Metaverse, and the one here, in reality. ' _I HAVE to change his heart now.'_ He told himself, ' _I'll convince Ryuji tomorrow. We're gonna take up Morgana's offer, for Takamaki, and everyone else's sake.'_

* * *

 **April 15**

The morning afterwards, everyone made their way to school like usual. Ren and Guren were walking behind a couple of high-schoolers, both of which were talking about Suzui, or Shiho, and her tardiness from the last meeting. Guren didn't seem interested, but the news caught Ren's attention, and his gut suddenly felt uneasy.

That same morning, during second period, Mr. Ushimaru was teaching the students in Ren and Ann's class, while Guren, Haneru and Makoto were listening to Ms. Kawakami. As she was talking about 'premeditated crimes', two out of three of them were still thinking about other things while writing down what their teacher was saying. Both of them dealt with individual things the other night.

Guren decided to take action involving tracking down Ren, and asked Futaba to find a way for her to keep track of him by using his GPS on his phone at all times. While she said it was for the sake of Sojiro not being worried about him, she was really doing it so she knew if he wasn't anywhere, he would be in the Metaverse. She wasn't sure how to stop him without exposing her ability to be there, too, so tracking him was the next best thing. Fortunately, for Futaba Sakura, she had no trouble getting a link between Guren and Ren's phone.

For Haneru, he procured the photos he took of Kamoshida and his Palace to his mom. It was startling for Mia to see that he could do something like this, since it never came across the Shadow Break's minds to do something like bring a Polaroid camera into the Metaverse. However, she was impressed, yet irritated at her son for forgetting to turn the flash off on his camera, saying, "That's not how a proper thief does things." Still, she knew the face of her opponent, and told Haneru to be on standby until she was ready to help him out. He forgot to mention that there were other thieves that came before him in Kamoshida's Palace, but he would try to remember next time.

"What the...what's that?!" One of the students spoke up, looking outside the window, towards the rooftop over the courtyard.

"What are you doing?! Get back into your seat!" Kawakami ordered.

"No way! That's dangerous!" A girl gasped, "That's Suzui of the volleyball team!"

"What's she planning, standing on the rooftop?!" This call-out drew the attention of Guren, Haneru and Makoto, startling them.

In Class 2-D, someone else got the attention of what was going on. "Wait... She's going to jump!" A girl gasped.

Mishima stood up, gasping, "Suzui!" Ren looked startled, but no where near as much as Ann, who stood up, racing towards the window. In fact, everyone was making their way there, in both classrooms, despite their teacher's orders.

They all watched in horror as the girl that the five main characters on the scene have seen at least once or twice in the school, was now standing on the edge of the rooftop that Ryuji and Ren met with Morgana just yesterday. She looked down at the ground below for a moment, thinking about her friend, Ann. Then she thought about what Kamoshida did to her yesterday. The pain was too much. There was no where left for her to go for her. Nothing to live for.

She fell, right before everyone's eyes.

Everyone screamed and exclaimed in shock of what they had seen, but no one was horrified by what had happened than Ann, who covered her mouth in horror as she raced down to the courtyard, trying to reach her friend. Ren saw her leave, and Ryuji joined up with him, saying, "What's goin' on?!"

"We need to head to the courtyard, now!" Ren told him, and the two chased off after Ann.

Haneru, after witnessing the suicide, was horrified at first, like everyone. However, he knew what to do, and called his mom's smartphone. After a few rings, she picked up, saying, "Haneru, why are you calling me at work while-."

"Mom, get someone down here to school!" Haneru interrupted, "Someone just tried to commit suicide by jumping off the roof! We need an ambulance here, ASAP!"

Mia, who was standing in the hospital hallway, gasped in horror, then her face became serious as she answered, "Okay. I'll get someone over there!" She hung up the phone as she told some doctors nearby, "We have an emergency! A student attempted suicide at Shujin Academy! Someone get there, immediately!"

Back at school, Guren demanded, "What good is it telling your mom before they call 119?!"

"My mom is a nurse at the Shibuya General Hospital. She's just as good as calling 119."

"I have to take care of the students and teachers on the scene!" Makoto told them, racing off.

"We'll come as well!" Haneru answered, passing Guren, who was too much worried about what was happening to be irritated by Haneru's adding her to the mix.

In the courtyard, Ren and Ryuji were amongst the crowd as the ambulance arrived on the scene, placing Shiho on a stretcher. The teachers were trying to usher the kids away, but the scene was too big for them to even care. They all had the cameras on their smartphones on as they recorded the scene.

Ann was in the front of the crowd, and caught the eye of the barely conscious Shiho. "Shiho... Why?" She asked, horrified at her friend's condition.

"Ann..." Shiho weakly cried out, and Ann hastily approached her, "I'm sorry. I...I can't take this...anymore..."

Haneru squeezed himself into the front of the crowd as Shiho got Ann close to her, whispering something in her ear. Ann backed off, horrified, as one name came from her mouth. "Kamoshida?!" The name got his, Ren's, and Ryuji's attention. However, before she could say anything more, Shiho went unconscious, causing Ann to cry out to her.

"Someone needs to go with her!" One of the doctors on duty called out, "Are there any teachers here?!"

No one really stepped forward to volunteer, so Ann declared, "I'll go!"

Haneru stepped forward as he added to Ann, "My mother is Mia Kurosawa. She's one of the nurses at Shibuya General Hospital. She knows what happened, so she'll help you and Suzui out!"

"Thank you..." she thanked him as they carried Shiho into the ambulance, and she climbed in as well. They closed the doors, and drove off with the siren on.

The three main boys who heard everything knew what had happened. Kamoshida drove Shiho Suzui to suicide. However, they were the only ones who heard or even cared. Well, all except for one. Mishima was in a panic as he knew, being the one who called Shiho to Kamoshida's office yesterday, what happened. He took off, getting the attention of Ren and Ryuji.

"Wasn't Mishima acting weird?" Ryuji asked Ren, who nodded in response, "We're gonna make him talk this time!" The two boys took off, with Haneru watching them leave. He looked at the scene, seeing the teachers, along with people like Makoto and Guren trying to calm people down, then chose to race after the two boys. This did catch the attention of Guren, who was going nowhere with ushering students. She wondered what he was doing.

* * *

Inside the school, Haneru hid himself on one end of the hallway leading into the gym locker room, while Ren and Ryuji cornered Mishima. Morgana was on the scene as well, laying on top of the lockers, out of view.

"Why'd you run like that, huh?!" Ryuji demanded.

"I didn't run..." Mishima whimpered.

Ryuji hammered a fist on the locker as he roared at him, "She jumped and tried to kill herself!"

"Calm down, Ryuji." Ren stopped him, then he turned to Mishima and followed, "You know something about all this. Tell us."

"He's right!" Ryuji agreed, "We ain't tryin' to get you busted. We won't say you talked either!"

Haneru thought he would step out and add in his insistence on hearing the story, but before he could, Mishima confessed, "Suzui... She was called out by Mr. Kamoshida!" This bit of news startled the trio of boys as he continued, "I was called by him a number of times too... to the teacher's room. It wasn't just me or Suzui either. He'd nominate someone when he was in a foul mood... and hit them."

"So the physical punishment thing was for real..." Ryuji understood.

"But yesterday, he called Suzui out of the blue." Mishima continued, "She didn't make any mistakes or anything. Mr. Kamoshida seemed really irritated that day, so it must've been...worse than usual."

The dreaded thought of what Kamoshida must've done came across the minds of the boys. Ren was the only one who understood what might've gotten him riled up yesterday; Ann's rejection to come to his place. It not only meant that Shiho lost her place as a starter in the volleyball team, but she was abused worse than before, all because Kamoshida didn't get what sick thing he wanted from Ann.

"THAT SON OF A BITCH!" Ryuji roared, and he raced out of the locker room, with Ren and Mishima chasing after him. They knew where he was going to. Haneru watched them leave, thinking about what he had heard, and sneaked after them, wanting to see what might transpire.

Inside Kamoshida's PE faculty office, Ryuji slid the door open in a fury, glaring daggers at the man sitting casually at his desk. "What the hell? Ever heard of knocking?" Kamoshida asked.

"You bastard! The hell did you do to that girl?!" Ryuji demanded fiercely, as Ren and Mishima followed in behind him.

"What are you talking about?" Kamoshida asked, acting confused.

Ryuji kicked a folding metal chair as he spat, "Don't play dumb with me!"

"That is enough!" Kamoshida barked.

"What you did...wasn't coaching!" Mishima stated, "You... You ordered me to call Suzui here. I can only imagine what you did to her!"

"You're going on and on about things you have no proof of..." Kamoshida told them, standing up and taking a couple steps towards them, "Basically, you're simply making these claims because you can't be a regular on the team, right?"

"That's not what this is about!" Mishima snapped.

"Even if it is exactly as you imagine it to be, hypothetically speaking, what can you do?" The PE teacher taunted, "We just received a call from the hospital. Suzui's in a coma, and her chances of recovery are slim. How would someone like that make a statement? There's no chance of her getting better, I hear... The poor girl."

Even though he tried to sound empathetic towards Suzui, it was easy to tell he was acting, especially since, for a moment, he couldn't hide a sinister smirk on his face. "You goddamn...!" He raised a fist to punch the teacher, but Ren restrained him, preventing him from following through. "Why're you stoppin' me?!"

"Don't give him an excuse!" Ren warned him.

"But still...!"

Kamoshida smirked as he bent towards Ryuji, asking, "Oh? You're stopping him? What a surprise. There's no need to hold back. Why not attack me?" He then went into a laugh as he finished, "Ohh, you can't. But of course can't!"

He turned away as he sat back at his desk, saying, "Everyone present right now will be expelled. I'm reporting all of you at the next board meeting." This news stunned the trio. "And let's see here... Ah, I know! As for Suzui, I'll pin the blame of her suicide on Guren Sakura. I'll say she was bullying Suzui and delivering physical abuse to the volleyball team. That'll finally get that trash kicked out this school." This added punishment further stunned the team, especially Ren. Outside the room, Haneru was eavesdropping in secret, his eyes shadowed from view.

"You can't make a decision like that!" Mishima exclaimed.

"Who would seriously consider what scum like you say?" Kamoshida hissed, "Sakura had it coming, anyway. She's been bailed out of jail way too many times to stay here in this school. It's about time she was delivered the final blow back into jail." He turned to Mishima as he followed up, "You threatened me too, Mishima, so you're just as responsible. To think you didn't know why I kept someone as talentless as you on the team. You act like you're a victim, but you leaked his criminal records, didn't you? It's all over the internet, correct? How terrible."

The boys looked to Mishima, who crippled to the floor, shuddering. He was the one who leaked Ren's records?! "He told me to do it. I had no choice..."

As Kamoshida chortled in maniacal laughter, Haneru looked up from where he stood, his eyes livid with anger. He hated the man who was gonna expel the three boys inside, and pin the blame of the physical abuse on Guren. There was absolutely no effin' way he was gonna let a horrendous heart like that go unchanged. He took a few sneaking steps away from the PE faculty office, then made a mad dash to find Guren or Makoto.

"Now, are we finished here?" Kamoshida asked, turning away and waving them off, "You're all expelled. As for you, Amamiya, you'll be sent to juvie after this. You're done for; your futures are mine to take. Now get out of my sight." The three boys could not stop the guy without making it worse, so they had no choice but to leave the scene.

"I can't believe that asshole's gonna get away with this!" Ryuji snarled.

"We'll make him eat his words." Ren retorted, his eyes hidden by the glare on his glasses, "After all, we have 'that'."

It took him a while before Ryuji realized what he meant. They had the Metaverse app, and they had Morgana's suggestion. With their backs against the wall like this, they knew they had no choice. Risks or not, they were gonna take up the cat's suggestion, and steal Kamoshida's Treasure.

* * *

Down in the hallway, Haneru finally found Guren as everyone was returning to their classrooms. "Where the hell were you?!" she demanded, "Didn't you say you would help Makoto and I get everyone back in their classes?!"

"I was eavesdropping on something, and you are not gonna like it." Haneru started, then in a whisper, "Turns out, Kamoshida was responsible for driving Suzui to commit suicide. Sakamoto, Amamiya, and that Mishima guy all confronted him, but he's gonna expel them, and pin the blame of the physical abuse and Suzui's suicide on you!"

The new stunned Guren. It made her sick to think that the poor girl's suicide was due to that horrible PE teacher and his physical abuse, but that he would turn it on her was just going too far.

"He can't get away with this, can he?!" Haneru demanded.

"...Actually, he can." Guren retorted, stunning the otaku, "After all, who would people believe; the Shujin Jailbird, or the gold medalist PE teacher? It's obvious who people will side with, even if Makoto and her sis tried to make an argument."

"But it can't end this way!" Haneru barked, "I don't care what it takes. I'm gonna figure out a way to stop him and-!"

"And how the hell are you gonna do that, hm?!" Guren demanded, "This isn't an anime. This isn't a video game. There is no miracle that'll help you stop a man of authority like that. There's no sort of rising comeback for a hero to turn around and save the day. This is reality, and you are a stupid otaku that has no power!"

Haneru was scared at Guren's glare for a moment, then he curled his hands into fists as he retorted, "Well, you don't know me well enough. I know not to give up, like you seem to be doing. You want a miracle? You want a comeback? Just wait and see!"

He turned and raced away towards his classroom, leaving Guren standing there, watching him. ' _What can he do? He doesn't have a snowball's chance at stopping Kamoshida.'_ She told herself, ' _And who says I'm giving up? I know what that bastard needs. After school, I'm gonna go into his Palace and, so help me, figure out a way to break through that door so I can steal Kamoshida's Treasure, and change his heart!'_

* * *

After school, Ryuji and Ren met up with Morgana again in the courtyard. Ryuji hammered the soda dispenser as he growled, "We can't waste any time! We gotta hurry up and go to that world and beat the shit outta that asshole!"

"We're not beating him up." Morgana retorted, "We're simply stealing his distorted desires. Can I assume that you've made up your minds about this? About how me might suffer a mental shutdown?"

"We can't make more people like Suzui suffer like this." Ren stated, "Let's take the gamble."

"I don't give a rat's ass anymore what happens to him." Ryuji agreed.

"Then it's settled." Morgana understood.

"By the way, is gettin' rid of a Palace hard?" Ryuji asked, "I mean, you have done it before, right?"

"When did I ever say that?" The question stunned the two boys. Did he just pretend to know how to change Kamoshida's heart?!

"Is it true that you're getting expelled? Everyone's talking about it, including how Sakura is responsible for the physical abuse on the volleyball team, and what happened to Shiho..." A girl's voice spoke up from behind, and they turned to see Ann come up to them.

"That asshole's at it again..." Ryuji snarled, knowing Kamoshida was responsible for this, "So you came all this way to tell us that?"

Ann paused, looking down for a second, then became serious as she answered, "If you're going to deal with Kamoshida, let me in on it, too. I can't just sit back and do nothing after what happened to Shiho!"

The fact that she wanted to get involved startled the two boys and the cat. However, they knew the risks of where they were going, and Ryuji retorted, "This has nothing to do with you. Don't butt your head into this."

"But it does! Shiho's my-!"

"I said don't get in our way!" Ryuji's snap at her shut her up. However, she had a defiant look in her teary eyes, and she raced away from the scene.

"That was harsh." Morgana told Ryuji.

"It was for the best..." Ren stated, "We can't let her go somewhere like that..."

"I hope that she doesn't torment herself over this." Morgana prayed, "When it comes down to it, women don't hesitate..."

* * *

At this very point, Lioness had just entered the Metaverse, glaring harshly at the castle in Kamoshida's heart. "Time to get into action!" She declared, taking the alternate shortcut up the platforms to the right of the front door, and entered into the upper floor she exited from before.

"I did look around the area where the locked door was at before. Maybe I should double back and see if I missed anything..." She took off across the chandeliers, searching for any clues.

At the same time as she left, there was a ripple as Kong entered onto the scene, entering the Metaverse, as well. He put his smartphone away, and glared at the castle. "Sorry, mom, but I'm gonna go deep into this guy's Palace." He told himself, "You just make sure that girl doesn't die. I'll find a path to that Treasure!" He crawled into the hole on the left side of the front gate, going back to the Safe Room he was at before.

* * *

In reality, Ren, Ryuji and Morgana hid themselves in the alleyway as the latter started, "The moment we cross over, we'll treat each other like phantom thieves, so I hope you're ready."

"Phantom thieves?" Ryuji echoed in confusion.

"Those who covertly sneak in and stylishly steal Treasure; that is what we become!"

"Not bad." "That sounds kinda cool!" Ren and Ryuji understood, with the latter continuing, "So we just gotta say the school, Kamoshida's name, and castle? Then we end up in bizarro world. How the hell's all this work? Someone made it?"

Ren thought back to his dreams, recalling that Igor did say he made the Metaverse app for him to use. However, despite all that has happened, he wasn't sure if now was the time to tell this, so he just answered, "Doesn't really matter right now, does it?"

"That's kinda creepy, but... eh, it seems useful enough." Ryuji got serious as he finished, "We'll show that effin' Kamoshida! Let's go!"

Hidden from view, Ann watched the two boys as they readied their smartphones. "They really are going to do something." She whispered, "They're doing something on their phone? A name... School?" She suddenly felt the atmosphere change around her, and she became shocked as she felt the very air distort around her.

Moment's later, Morgana, Ren and Ryuji found themselves at the drawbridge once more, all in their Phantom thief attires and forms once more. "All right! Time to bust on through!" Ryuji declared.

"What is this?!" The familiar exclamation got the attention of the boys, and they turned to see, in their complete shock, Ann looking about the place in complete bewilderment.

"T-Takamaki?!" Ryuji gasped.

Ann looked to them, recognizing, "That voice... Sakamoto?! And... Are you Amamiya-kun?!"

"Wh-Wh-Why are you here?!" Ryuji stammered.

"How should I know?!" Ann retorted, "What's going on? Hey, where are we?! Isn't this the school?!"

Morgana seemed enamored by Ann's beauty, especially since the last time they were here, they saw the cognitive Ann in a bikini, showing off her full figure. Ren looked to Morgana, who immediately caught his eye and shook his feelings off as he stated, "I see. Perhaps she was dragged in because of that app thing. If multiple people can enter with the person who uses it, it stand to reason it'll pull anyone nearby."

"For real?!" Ryuji asked, surprised at this fact.

"Wait, so THIS is related to Kamoshida?!" Ann overheard everything.

"Aaanyways, you gotta leave!" Ryuji told her, only for her to deny him.

"The Shadows are going to find us if you make a scene." Morgana warned her.

It was only then that she noticed him and gasped, "No way! It talked?! Oh my god, it's a monster cat!"

Morgana felt a pang of hurt as he fell on all fours, injured by Ann's words. "Aren't you gonna retort 'I'm no cat' like usual?" Ren asked.

"Just leave me alone!" Morgana moaned.

"You better explain what's going on!" Ann demanded, "I won't leave until you do!"

The boys looked to each other as Ryuji sighed, "Looks like we're gonna force her. But how're we supposed to do that?"

"Just take her back to where we came in." Morgana answered, recovering from his emotional scar, "That's how it worked last time, right?"

"Oh, yeah." Ryuji understood, turning to Ren, "Can you lend me a hand?" The boys approached Ann as he finished, "We'll explain after everything's over!"

After a resentful struggle, Ann was sent out of the Metaverse, leaving the three boys alone. "We better be careful from now on when we use that app..." Ryuji sighed.

"You should've checked the tools you used!" Morgana scolded, "Why do I, the one who was watching, know more about it than you two?!"

"Sh-shuddup!" Ryuji regretfully responded, "Geez, Takamaki found out right when we were startin' off... We gotta deal with this fast!"

"That girl's name is Ann Takamaki, right?" Morgana asked, "Lady Ann..."

Suddenly, they heard some sounds coming from inside the castle, mainly of the clanking of the guard's armor, with slight sounds of fighting from two particular Persona-users. "The Shadows have noticed us." The humanoid cat understood, "You better brace yourselves, got it?" He turned to Ren as he finished, "We're counting on you, Joker!"

"Joker?" Ryuji echoed, "Is that a nickname?"

"Don't refer to it in such a lame way. It's a code name." Morgana explained, "What kind of stupid phantom thief would use their real name?! I'm not down for that! And there's no telling what kind of effect yelling our real names will have on the Palace. It's just a precaution."

"So, why is he 'Joker'?" Ryuji asked.

"Because he's our trump card when it comes to fighting strength."

"Trump card?" Ren echoed, thinking for a second, then he answered, "Guess that will work."

"It's settled then." Morgana stated, "Next up is you, Ryuji. You'll be... Let's see... 'Thug'."

Ryuji obviously didn't like that codename, as a blood vessel popped on his head as he growled, "Are you pickin' a fight with me?! I'll choose it myself!" He calmed himself, and continued, "When it comes to me, it's gotta be this mask. Honestly, I actually kinda like it. What if we named me after this?"

"Fine..." Morgana sighed, "Why not 'Skull' then?"

"Ooh! That sounds awesome! I'm Skull!" Ryuji exclaimed, looking down at the cat creature of their team, "what do we do about this one's code name?"

"I don't know. What do you think?" Ren asked.

"How 'bout Mona?" Ryuji requested.

"Well, if Joker thinks it's easier to call me that, then I'll go with it." Morgana answered, "All right. From here on out, we're Joker, Skull, and Mona. We need to be absolutely thorough about using those code names from now on!" With their decision made, they charged into the castle, making their way to the hole on the left side of the door.

They made their way in, where they caught Kamoshida's Shadow speaking to his soldiers about the recent intruders, and that they should strengthen their security and kill them on sight. Knowing there was no way to take Kamoshida and all the soldiers head on, they chose an alternate route; one that had a single soldier to take care of. However, Mona had an idea about how to handle this.

Joker rushed in, slashing at the soldier to make it turn into its' Shadow form; a Pixie. "What the hell was that for?!" The Shadow suddenly spoke up, "You guys are the intruders that King Kamoshida was talking about?!"

"Whoa! It's talking!" Skull exclaimed as he, Joker and Mona all aimed their firearms at her.

"Wh-Wait! Those aren't real, are they?!" The Shadow looked at guns and, in Mona's case, slingshots aimed at her, "What're you going to do with me?!"

"Give us money, or something valuable." Joker requested.

"But, this happened so suddenly... I actually don't have anything on me..." the Shadow admitted, much to the shock of the trio.

"This wasn't what I planned, but oh well." Mona stated, "Time for you to go to hell!"

"Wait! Can't we work something out? Don't kill me, please!" the Shadow begged, "Won't you let me go?"

Joker thought for a second, then answered, "Fine, then. We can let you go."

"Wait, hold on! Are you for real?!" Skull questioned in shock.

"Are you the type who can't say no?" the Shadow asked, "You really are sweet. It's not too bad." Suddenly, she started to glow as she gasped, "Wait, something's coming!"

The three of them watched as the Shadow became encased in a glowing white and blue aura as she said, "That's right. I remember now! I don't belong just to King Kamoshida. I'm an existence that drifts about in the sea of human hearts. My name is Pixie! From now on, I'll live within you!" She shined and turned into a mask like Joker's, and shot towards him, becoming part of the mask he wore.

"What was that just now?!" Mona gasped, "What happened?!" Joker and Skull looked to one another, also startled at what transpired.

Suddenly, another soldier appeared from behind them, taking the form of a Bicorn upon discovering them. "Crap, they noticed us!" Skull exclaimed, seeing the Shadow ready to strike.

Joker felt a sensation in himself. It seemed the Pixie that joined his mask suddenly gave him a new power to use. One that he chose to work with. He got in front of the team as he declared, "Come, Pixie!" His mask came off, taking the form of the Pixie, who unleashed an electric bolt at the Bicorn, shocking it into submission.

"Whoa! That's the Shadow from earlier!" Skull exclaimed.

"Don't tell me... Did you take in the Shadow's appearance and powers as a Persona?!" Mona gasped.

"P-Please! Don't kill me!" the Shadow cried out as the Pixie reverted back to Joker's mask, "I was just working under King Kamoshida's orders! I'm too scared to go against him!"

"I won't kill you, under one condition..." Joker approached him, raising a hand towards it, "Join our fight. Together, we can stop Kamoshida. You have nothing to be afraid of."

"R-Really?" the Shadow asked looking at him, "That look in your eyes... For some reason, I really believe you..." He suddenly glowed as the Shadow stood on all fours as it stated, "I remember now! I am more than a servant of King Kamoshida. I exist within the souls of humanity! I am Bicorn, and I shall be your power!" It glowed and dove into Joker's mask, becoming a part of him. He looked down at his hand, curling it into a fist as he felt the new power flowing into him.

"Holy... Does that mean you can wield multiple Personas?!" Mona gasped, "I've never seen anyone do that before. I didn't even know it was possible!"

"Is that a good thing?" Joker asked him.

"Of course it is! Only one heart exists per person, so normally a person can only have one Persona! But this... this is incredible! That ability will give us a huge advantage in battle!" Mona was pleased at what had just transpired as he finished, "All right, try to do that even more if the opportunity arises! You better help out too, Skull!"

"I don't really get all of it, but it sounds awesome!" Skull declared, "Hell yeah! We'll hold every last one of 'em up!" They turned and went further into the Palace, unaware of the greater things they'll gain on this very day besides Joker's powers.

* * *

Just outside the castle, where everyone first came in, there was a ripple, and Ann Takamaki came out of it, looking at her smartphone. "This is that place from earlier!" She noticed, looking about, then down at the smartphone, at the new app that suddenly appeared on it; the Metaverse app. "What's up with this app?" She asked, "I just said the words Sakamoto said, and I ended up..."

"Princess?" A voice suddenly caught Ann's attention, and she saw three knights race towards her, calling out, "Princess!" Ann screamed in panic as they came at her, ready to take her.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kong was tailing a knight, getting through a place that was inaccessible due to iron bars, but after the knight unlocked it, he destroyed him and moved on. He opened the door ahead to find something horrific.

"What is with this room?" Kong asked, looking about, seeing what looked like a restraining device surrounded by wax candles, shaped like an X where the arms and legs should be restrained. However, what made him really sick were the cognitions that represent the girls in the volleyball team. They were pink, humanoid figures, on the floor in several provocative positions, almost like they were willing to throw their bodies to Kamoshida if he were wanting them.

"This is sick!" Kong sneered, seeing the cognitions, "They look like members of the volleyball team. This is how he views the girls at school?! So not only does he physically abuse the team, he feels the girls swoon over him like this? I'll make sure he pays…" He then paused as he gave a fearful expression as he added, "Then again, when mom finds out, she'll flip her lid. Man, she does not like stuff like this."

Behind him, the door cracked open, and Lioness peeked into the room, hearing the voice that was within. She was going nowhere in finding a way to unlock the door before, and had a few close shaves with encountering Shadows up until this point.

It didn't take her a second before noticing Kong standing there, looking about, investigating the room. " _Who is that?"_ she wondered, " _A cognition? No…he sticks out with that outfit to be any part of this gym teacher's mind. If it's not Kamoshida, then…who could it be?"_

She then noticed him turn, seeing the mask on his face, and came to a realization. " _That mask…a Persona user? Like me?! But how is that possible?! Am I not the only one?"_

Just then, the two of them heard the sounds of clanking footsteps coming from the far side of the room, along with the sounds of a girl crying out in anger. Based on the voices and sounds, it sounded like she was being dragged by knights. "Crap!" Both Lioness and Kong gasped, and while Lioness narrowed the door a bit, Kong found himself a dark, shadowy area just in the upper corner of the room, and leapt into it, hiding himself from view.

The door opened heavily, and in came two soldiers, each of them restraining a girl that both of them recognized. It was the girl that was friends with the other girl that attempted suicide, Ann Takamaki. "Let me go!" she barked at the soldiers. She paused as she looked down at the fake girls, gasping in shock at the sight of them. "W-What is all this?!" she demanded.

"Is that Takamaki?" Lioness asked, "The girl that was supposedly dating with Kamoshida?"

"That girl again who was with Suzui... How'd she get into the Metaverse?" Kong whispered.

"I said I was sorry for knocking over the armor!" Ann barked, "Just let me go!" The knights didn't listen to her, as they forced her wrists and legs into the restraints, locking her in. This kind of sight sickened the two eavesdroppers.

"What's this all about?!" Ann demanded, "Seriously, I'm gonna call the cops!"

" _She has no idea of where she is at…"_ Lioness told herself, " _Seriously, how did she get in here? Did she come with that guy?"_

"So, this is the intruder." said an eerie voice. Everyone looked to see Kamoshida's Shadow enter into the room, followed by a shocking sight; another Ann Takamaki. The cognitive version that Kamoshida envisioned.

"Kamoshida?!" Ann gasped, seeing the man before her, along with the duplicate of herself, "Who's that?!" More importantly, what is this place?! Why's the school turned into something like this?!"

"It's Kamoshida's Shadow again. But that girl..." Kong blushed in embarrassment at the sight of the replica's skimpy attire, "That's just wrong on so many levels!"

"He even views Takamaki as just a sex tool for him!" Lioness sneered quietly, "That just makes me sick! As soon as I find the opportunity, I'll take him out and save that girl!"

"I can't believe you mistook my Ann for someone like her." Shadow Kamoshida told the guards with a chuckle, then to the restrained Ann, "Are you afraid?"

"What is that outfit…?" Ann questioned, disgusted at the king's robe and crown look that he was wearing, "Have you lost your mind?"

"I do as I please here." Kamoshida answered, "After all, this is my castle… The world of my desires."

"What the…?!" Ann was startled at what he was saying, and asked, "Wait… Is this some red-light district?!"

" _She really doesn't get it."_ Lioness and Kong both thought to themselves.

"This isn't funny!" Ann barked angrily, "Enough of the bullshit, Kamoshida!" Ann sneered, struggling against her restraints to no avail.

"Tch!" Kamoshida scoffed and turned to 'his' Ann and asked, "The girl's decided to tell me off. What do you think of that?"

"Talking back is, like, totally unforgivable…" the fake Ann lazily answered.

"In that case, she should be executed." Shadow Kamoshida decided, much to Ann's horror, as she saw a bronze knight approach her with sword at hand, "Now then, how should I play with you? Shall I tear you into little pieces?"

" _This is bad! At this rate, she'll be a filet for that asshole!"_ Kong growled, " _I gotta make a move and stop him, now! But with those knights on either side of her… I can't attack without risking her life!"_

" _I gotta stop him, but what about that other Persona user?"_ Lioness asked herself, " _If he sees me, will he help me, or join in on putting me down? It would be overwhelming if he fought me, along with those knights. Should I risk it?"_

Just then, the door to the opposite of them opened up, revealing three new figures on the scene; Joker, Skull and Mona. They had heard that Ann was taken captive by the Shadows, and came this way to save her.

All three of them looked about at the humanoid girls that were in provocative positions, then noticed the situation Ann was in. "Takamaki!" shouted the one in the skull mask, and both Kong and Lioness recognized the voice.

" _Those guys again?!"_ Lioness's told herself in shock, " _Just how many times am I gonna find them here?!"_

" _That's the guy who confronted Kamoshida earlier today, Sakamoto."_ Kong recalled, " _In that case, that guy next to him is that transfer student, Amamiya-san. But who's the chibi cat person?"_

"Just when I was about to start enjoying myself…" Shadow Kamoshida growled.

"What's the deal with this guy?!" Ann demanded to the trio.

"You little…" Ryuji growled at Kamoshida, seeing the position Ann was in.

"…How many times are you gonna come back?" Shadow Kamoshida questioned the trio, then to Ann, "I bet you're just like those thieves. You came because you're pissed at me, huh? But, ah… I forget that chick's name, but it's your fault she jumped, you know."

Ann looked horrified at the accusation Kamoshida gave as he continued, "You were so reluctant to throw yourself onto me that I had her take your place. If she croaks, it's on you."

"You bastard!" Ann shouted, which the two spying Persona users also mentally shouted. He was responsible for Shiho Suzui's attempt at committing suicide.

As the bronze knight drew closer to Ann with his sword, Ryuji shouted to stop this, but the knights on either side of Ann crossed their blades at her neck as Kamoshida warned them, "Take one more step and I'll kill her on the spot."

"Grr… Dammit!" Ryuji growled, taking a step back to avoid such an incident. Lioness and Kong both cursed at the useless positions they were in.

"Just sit back and enjoy the dismantlement show." Kamoshida told the trio, looking at the panicking Ann, "Maybe I'll start with her clothes…"

"You're such a perv!" the fake Ann giggled.

"Hey, what are we gonna do?!" Ryuji asked his cohorts as the bronze knight was within range of Ann, "Takamaki!"

Frustrated with herself, Ann muttered, "Is this… my punishment for what happened to Shiho?"

"That's more like it. You should've looked like this from the start." Kamoshida told Ann.

"Shiho… I'm so sorry…" Ann whimpered.

"What are you saying, Takamaki…" Lioness growled under her breath.

"Don't give into despair!" Kong whispered, wanting to step out and shout it.

"You're just going to give in, just like that?!" the black-haired masked boy spoke up, "Don't you want to pay him back for what he did to you or Suzui? She is your friend, right?! Your only friend!"

Ann seemed surprised at what the boy said, then her expression became serious as she muttered, "You're right. She and I were friends since middle school. I would always space out in class, but she was the only one wanting to talk to me. But what he did to her... Letting this piece of shit toy with me… What was I thinking?!"

"It's like I always say. Slave should just behave and-." Kamoshida started. He was interrupted as Ann growled, "Shut up! I've had enough of this… You've pissed me off, you son of a bitch!"

" _That's it. Fight back!"_ Kong smirked.

" _Takamaki…!"_ Lioness was surprised, but impressed at the anger Ann was exerting.

" **My… It's take far too long.** " someone spoke in Ann's mind, and suddenly, her eyes went yellow as she felt a powerful headache coming on, causing her to shout in pain as she struggled in her restraints, " **Tell me… Who is going to avenge her if you don't? Forgiving him was never the option. Such is the scream of the other you that dwells within. I am thou. Thou art I. We can finally forge a contract…** "

With one final surge, Ann drooped her head from enduring the pain, but she was still conscious as she muttered, "I hear you…Carmen." She raised her head quickly, as a red panther mask appeared on her face, "You're right. No more holding back!"

The five Persona users were startled at the sight of the mask, while Kamoshida looked afraid as flames burned off the restrains on Ann, freeing her. " **There you go… Nothing can be solved by restraining yourself.** " the voice of Carmen spoke, " **Understand? Then I'll gladly lend you my strength.** "

Ann took one hand, and ripped off the mask, taking some of her blood with it, which almost instantly disintegrated in the flames consuming her, causing the Shadow knights to back off from her.

When she next revealed herself, she wore a new attire; A skin tight red latex catsuit with a cleavage cutout, zippers, pink gloves, dark red thigh-high boots and has a clipped on tail in the back.

Behind her was her own new Persona; a humanoid woman with a black and pink-patterned mask and drill-like twin tails, the same length as Ann's. She wore a flowing red and black-trimmed dress with attached gloves, decorated with roses, exposing her pink-skinned chest, and high heels that went up her legs. Two smaller, humanoid-like males in tuxedos and heart-shaped masks and eyes were around her, one underneath one of her heels, and another hanging in midair, both of which had collars connected to a leash-like vine she held.

"Whoa!" Kong gasped, coming out of the shadows at the sight of Ann's transformation.

"She awoke to her Persona, too!" Lioness realized.

Ann glared daggers at one of the silver knights, and in one second, she dashed to him, and kicked the sword out of his hand. She leapt up, caught the sword, and with a diving slash, she sliced the fake Ann in half, making her vanish. Kamoshida panicked in fear as he backed off, while the bronze knight covered his front.

"You know what? I'm not some cheap girl you can toy with, you scumbag." Ann growled at Kamoshida, while the three guys gathered around her, "You stole everything from Shiho, crushing her underfoot… Now it's your turn!" The sword she held became enflamed as it transformed, turning into a whip as she raised a finger, pointing it at the accused, "I will rob you of everything…!"

"How dare you! Enough of your insolence!" the bronze knight barked, as he and two other knights next to him suddenly turned to black and red muck, merging together to form a shadow that looked like a large satyr sitting on a toilet. A Belphegor.

"No, I've had enough of you." Ann retorted, "No one's gonna stop me now!" She cracked the whip on the large Shadow's face, making it falter. "My whip's not enough?" She asked, "In that case... Dance, Carmen!" Her Persona suddenly unleashed flaming balls, blasting in the Persona's face, and making him fall back. "Cry for me!" Ann snapped her whip, acting totally different from before.

"Scary..." Skull muttered as he and Mona looked at her from behind.

"That girl gives angry Guren a run for her money..." Kong muttered.

"Damn, when did she ever showed signs of a dominatrix before?" Lioness asked, a little stunned at this personality. She heard someone shout, "Hey, you! What are you doing here?!" She turned and was startled as two knights appeared behind her, one raising his sword at her.

"Crap, I let my guard down!" she gasped. In order to avoid getting sliced, she dove out the doors, drawing the attention of the four Persona-using boys and Ann in the room.

"What the…?!" Kong gasped, seeing Lioness recover herself as she summoned her rapier to fight the two knights entered into the room, "Now who's this chick?!" he shook his head as he looked to the knights and muttered, "No, now is not the time to think. Time to act!"

He made a mad dash to the wall, using his parkour techniques to leap at the wall, run along it for a second, then jump at the knights, placing a foot on each of their shoulders. Taking the moment they were startled at the sight of him, he grabbed their masks and ripped them off, doing a front flip as he landed next to the surprised Lioness. The knights suddenly transformed before them, turning into a Berith and an Andras.

"Who are you?!" Lioness gasped, wondering about the boy who saved her.

"Name's Kong." he answered, summoning his quarterstaff, "But is this really the time for 'getting to know you'?"

Lioness blinked, then got serious. It was confirmed he was not a threat to her as she took a fighter's stance and answered, "Yeah. Time to annihilate these clowns!"

"Woah! Where did they come from?!" Ryuji demanded.

"More Persona-users?!" the cat monster gasped, "I didn't know about this! In any case, they don't seem to be enemies."

"Guys, let's help Takamaki out with this guy!" the black-haired individual told the two, witnessing Ann backing off from icy attacks delivered by the Shadow. They nodded in response, and went to work helping their newly-awakened ally.

The Berith came at Lioness, ready to skewer her. However, she scoffed as she parried his weapon, then unleashed several thrusts with her rapier, with the final one sending it crashing into the wall behind. "Damn! That's just like Asuna Yuuki!" Kong compared, amazed at her rapier skills.

"What?" Lioness asked, looking to him, ' _This attitude... It couldn't be...'_

The Andras came at her from behind, but Kong easily saw it coming. He did a fist pump as he shouted, "Sasuke, I choose you!" His mask came off, and his Persona slashed the owl man Shadow, making him fall back in pain.

Lioness looked in disbelief as she recognized the face of the boy working with her. ' _Haneru Kurosawa?!'_ She exclaimed in her mind, ' _No way! The annoying otaku ended up being a Persona-user, too?!'_

Hey, let's go All-Out on these monsters!" Kong stated as Sasuke came back to him in mask form, "You know how to do that, right?"

Lioness was too stunned at discovery to answer at first, but she shook herself free of this as she answered, "O-Of course I can! I haven't done it in a long while, but-."

"Then by all means. Ladies first." Kong gestured to her.

Lioness was baffled at the person she thought she knew before, but decided to save her shock for later as she nodded in approval. She led the attack as they peppered away at the two Shadows, ending it by landing on her feet, sheathing her rapier and glaring ahead as she shouted, "Writhe in agony!", while the Shadows died behind her.

Behind them, the Belphegor was send back by a slingshot ball from Mona, followed by a twin electric attack from Skull's Captain Kid and Joker's Pixie. Ann finished the job with having Carmen unleash another blast of flames that made it crash to the ground again.

"Let's go, you guys!" Joker ordered.

"Let's whip it out in style!" Ann followed, and the four went into their own All-Out attack, damaging it heavily. They came out of the attack, with Ann doing a twirl and striking a pose with a peace sign as she stated, "A beautiful rose has its' thorns!" The monster vanished from existence, leaving the six Persona users in the room alone with Kamoshida, who looked terrified.

"S-Seriously?!" The 'king' stammered, "Oh, shit..." He ran away out the double wooden doors.

"Wait!" Ann shouted, trying to pursue him, but her legs gave way, and she fell from exhaustion.

"Why'd you come here, man?!" Skull questioned her, "And more importantly, how?!"

"Hey! Is that how you speak to a woman?!" Mona snapped, "Are you all right, Lady Ann?"

"L-Lady Ann...?" She echoed, confused by the title.

"Unlocking your Persona taxes your body after the adrenaline rush." Kong stated as he and Lioness joined the four, "Best not to push yourself at the moment."

"That aside, who are you guys?!" Skull asked, finally speaking to the two, "I've never seen you two before. Have you, Mona?"

"Sorry, I haven't met them either." The cat answered.

"Wait, what is this thing?" Ann asked, looking at Mona, "Is it alive? How can it talk? And where in the world are we?!"

"Stop with the billions of questions, newbie!" Lioness scoffed, "Seriously, I end up trying to secure a route to the Treasure, and you guys mess it up again!"

"Geez, there's no need to be rude about it!" Kong stated, finding her anger unjustified.

Just then, Ann noticed the attire she now wore, and blushed in embarrassment as she covered her cleavage and asked, "Why am I dressed like this?! When did I-?" She saw Ryuji leering at her look, and exclaimed, "Don't look at me!"

"If you guys wanna stop fooling around, more reinforcements are coming their way here." Lioness told the five. She was right. The door opened, and five more soldiers entered the room, coming at them. "I'll break open a path for you. Get out while you can." She told them.

"W-Wait!" Kong stopped her, "I don't even know who you are! What's your name?"

Lioness looked at Kong. She knew who he was, but he didn't recognize her yet. She decided not to tell this person, especially since that might make him spend more time around her, and the last thing she wanted was to spend time with an otaku like him, along with all these other guys. Besides... There was a good reason for her to not gain a close connection to them, as well.

"Call me Lioness." She told them, "That's my codename."

"Lioness..." Kong echoed, wondering who she really was.

"Now stand back!" she ordered them, and she took a leaping step back herself, then made a mad dash at the soldiers with her rapier on hand. "Leo, come!" She shouted, and the mane of her mask disappeared to form her violent Persona, who roared as it bashed through the knights, knocking them out as Lioness stabbed any that came close to her, ending their lives. With that, she exited the room, leaving the five alone.

"Holy shit..." Skull muttered, amazed at the damage she did.

"She looks like she has experience." Mona noticed, "It might be nice for her to join us the next time we're here."

"Yeah, she didn't look like the socializing girl." Kong finished, "You guys help Takamaki. I'll guide you out!"

Ann looked at him, surprised as she asked, "Wait, how do you know my name?"

"I'll tell you when we leave the Palace. C'mon!" With that, he led the team out, with Joker and Skull holding Ann up as they raced out of the castle. Kong used his Metaverse app, and together, they escaped the world, returning to the alleyway they came from before.

Ann looked about, freeing herself from the boys that carried her back, asking, "W-We're back here, again?"

"Yep. We're back in the real world again." Haneru stated, turning to the group.

They looked at him for a moment before Ryuji remembered, "Hey, I know you! You're that third-year transfer student we met a couple times!"

"Haneru Kurosawa." he introduced himself, "In one world, I'm a third-year, total otaku. In the Metaverse, I'm the Phantom Thief known as Kong. Pleased to meet other Persona-users besides me."

"Likewise..." Ren answered casually.

"Hey, where's that Lioness girl?" Ryuji asked, looking about. They all looked about as well. No sign of the person underneath the lion's mask.

"Must've ran away before we came here." Morgana assumed, "I wonder why she doesn't want us to know here identity?"

"That aside..." Ann stated, "Why is the cat talking?!"

"This is a first for me, too." Haneru agreed.

"We still don't understand it ourselves." Ryuji answered, "We should probably get outta here. I could use something to drink."

"Yeah, I'm dehydrated as well." Haneru agreed, "C'mon. I know there are soda dispensers in the station down below."

They wandered their way to the train station, unaware that they have been watched since they came back. Guren was hiding in the corner, peering around the corner to see them leave. She was befuddled beyond belief. Not only was Ann born as a Persona-user, but she discovered that Haneru was also one, and someone who had experience, based on what she deciphered. ' _Just what the hell is going on?'_ She asked herself, ' _Why are there so many Persona-users appearing in my life in the past few days?!'_

* * *

Down in the station, Ryuji and Haneru got drinks for everyone, while Ren and Morgana explained a bit of the world they had just gone through, and about Morgana.

"Which one do you want?" Ryuji asked Ann as they rejoined them.

"Whichever one's not carbonated." She answered.

"Well, there's this cold tea drink." Haneru stated, giving her the drink. She took it with a thanks, while he had a lemon-lime soda, Ryuji had a coke, and Ren had a lime soda.

"What about me?" Morgana asked, coming out of Ren's backpack.

"But you're a cat." Ryuji answered. This made Ann chuckle.

"So, you recovering, Takamaki-san?" Haneru asked, "I know your body must be worn from unlocking your Persona. It was the same for me."

"Yeah, I'm doing better." Ann answered, "I'm just surprised that we're talking to a cat."

"We seem to be the only ones who understand him." Ryuji pointed out.

"Must be because we all went to the Metaverse." Haneru assumed, "Who knows?"

"I understand if you're still confused." Morgana assured her, "Demanding that you understand all of this right after what you went through is asking too much."

"Honestly, I still can't believe that all happened..." Ann muttered, "That power... my Persona..."

"It's the will of your rebellion, Lady Ann." Morgana explained, "With it, you'll be able to fight in that other world."

She looked up at the pair who were explaining things to her before, and summed up, "So if what you told me is true, we can make Kamoshida have a change of heart, right? Is it really possible? Can we actually force him to confess his crimes?"

"It is." Haneru answered, "After all, I managed to change someone's heart before moving here. He almost ruined my mom and I's life had we not unlocked our Personas and stole his Treasure."

"Wait, you said 'we'." Ryuji pointed out, "Does that mean..."

"Yeah. My mom's a Persona-user, like the rest of us." Haneru answered, getting shocked looks from everyone.

"An adult who is also a Persona-user?! No frickin' way!" Ryuji exclaimed.

"She was part of an older generation of Persona-users when she was around our age." Haneru explained, "She and my dad were both Persona-users, along with a group of friends."

"That's incredible..." Morgana stated, shocked at this news, "I never even knew there was an older generation."

"Bet she knows more about that place than any of us do." Ryuji assumed, "Could be useful if we met her."

"If you want, you can come to my place tomorrow after school, and meet her." Haneru suggested, "She told me she was gonna help out with taking care of Suzui tonight, so she'll be home late."

"Suzui..." Ann muttered, worried for her friend, "It's a really lucky thing your mom's a hospital nurse." Haneru smiled at her courtesy towards him and his mom.

"That aside, we still have to try again on Morgana's plan to change Kamoshida's heart." Ren told the team.

"Right. The volleyball team's keepin' quietly about this, while teachers and parents turn a blind eye." Ryuji pointed out, "If guys like us try and complain, they're just gonna shoot us down. Goin' all in on this plan is the only choice we got."

"Not to mention that we are running out of time." Haneru added, turning to Ren and Ryuji, "I actually was eavesdropping on you guys when you confronted Kamoshida this morning. If we don't change his heart soon, you'll both be expelled, and Guren Sakura will take the fall that should belong to that bastard. I can't let such injustice go unpunished."

"Then let me help too." Ann told the team, "I want to make him pay for what happened to Shiho. He just keeps going like nothing happened, even after what he did to her... I'll never forgive him."

"Well, I'd say the more, the merrier." Haneru stated, "I mean, she's a Persona-user, like the rest of us."

"She'll be great." Ren added.

"I agree as well." Morgana added, "We are lacking in manpower, after all. Don't worry. I'll protect her."

"Even if you said no, I'd just go in alone." Ann pointed out.

"You mean like Lioness, right?" Haneru asked.

"I really don't get her, either." Ryuji muttered, "I mean, she acted so high and mighty, like she was better than us!"

"From what I can guess, she might've been a Persona-user longer than the rest of us." Morgana assumed, "She knew about forming an infiltration route to the Treasure. However, she doesn't seem to have reached it, yet."

"Well, we can be sure to reach it before she does!" Ryuji declared, turning to Haneru, "I just can't stand someone as stuck up as her changing Kamoshida's heart before we do! Besides..." He grinned at Haneru as he pointed out, "...you said you took down a Palace before, and your mom was an experienced Persona-user, too? I bet with you two on our side, we'll definitely reach the Treasure!"

"Then it's decided." Haneru decided, "Tomorrow after school, we'll head to my place to form a meeting to infiltrate Kamoshida's Palace. I live in Saitama, so I'll give you my address."

"Oh, wait! We don't have each other's info." Ann realized, "Let me have your numbers and chat ID." Ryuji and Ren gave Ann and Haneru their numbers and chat ID, with Haneru adding in his address and his mom's number to each of them, as well.

"Just make sure you guys don't go heading back without me." Ann warned them, "I'll be counting on you guys. Same goes for you, Morgana."

"The pleasure is all mine, Lady Ann." Morgana answered sweetly. Ann walked away, with Morgana mumbling, "What a kind girl. Such admirable consideration for others. And the innocence to cast herself into the jaws of death to achieve her goal. She cares about her friends, and she's beautiful to boot... What a girl! She's captured my heart."

"You loooove her~!" Haneru sassed, mimicking a cat from an anime he loved. Morgana looked a bit irritable as the otaku snickered, "Man, just once I wanted to say that line!"

"So will it be alright for us to come tomorrow?" Ryuji asked, "Your mom won't mind, right?"

"She'll be fine. She did say there was a new generation of Phantom thieves forming since I awoke to my powers. Guess she was right, since I met you guys."

"Still, we will need to make a secret hideout where we could discuss things besides your home." Morgana stated.

"A hideout, huh? I like the sound of that." Ryuji smirked.

"My place is a bit far off to be a proper hideout." Haneru admitted, "Maybe somewhere in the school?"

"The school rooftop will work." Morgana suggested, "It seems like nobody goes up there. For the time being, that will make the perfect hideout."

"Well, that settles that." Haneru understood.

"I can't contact you from inside a Palace, so I'll stay in this world." The cat continued, "That being said, I'll need someone to take care of me. I'm personally nominating you, Joker. You should feel honored."

"What?!" Ren questioned in shock.

"There's no way I can at my place." Ryuji pointed out.

"Not sure if animals are allowed to live at my place, either." Haneru added, "Then again, I don't fully know the rules, yet."

Just then, the voice over the intercom called out, "THE TRAIN WILL BE ARRIVING SOON."

"Gotta go. I have to get things prepped for my mom coming home and for you guys tomorrow." Haneru stated, shouldering his backpack.

"Can't wait to get together tomorrow!" Ryuji added, "Welp, see ya guys!" Haneru and Ryuji left Ren and Morgana, heading to their separate routes back home.

"OK! Let's go look at my residence for this world." Morgana told Ren, who sighed at how so much was decided for him before he could get a say in the matter. Nevertheless, he walked with Morgana as they made their way to the train back home.

* * *

Ren and Morgana were the first to reach home. They entered Café Leblanc to find the place still open, with only one customer there; a woman with short blue-dyed hair, wearing a punk-rock style attire.

"Place is still open. Go upstairs, would ya?" Sojiro asked Ren. He walked past the booth that the woman sat at. They had a short moment of eye-contact before Ren walked onward.

She had just finished her coffee, and stood up. "I'll leave my payment on the table." she told Sojiro, "Thanks. I'll see you later."

"Come back again." Sojiro responded, and she left through the door, making the bell tingle as it closed.

"Who was that?" Ren asked, curious about her.

"That customer just now?" Sojiro asked, "She's the head doctor over at that clinic down the street. Rumor has it she gives pretty crappy examinations, and sells some weird homemade medicines on top of that. At least, that's what I've heard. I haven't been there myself." He sighed and shook his head, adding, "They should really just leave her alone. It's not like she's getting in the way of their lives..."

"Hey, are we there yet?" Morgana's muffled voice came from inside Ren's backpack, making him panic and hold the bag close to shut him up. Sojiro looked at Ren, who tried to feign ignorance as he turned and walked up the stairs into his room.

As soon as he was in the clear upstairs, he got Morgana on his bed. He took one look around and stated, "What the...?! What is this place?! Is this some kind of abandoned house?!"

"It's my room. Keep it down." Ren hushed him. Too late, though.

He heard footsteps coming up and saw Sojiro approach him, seeing the cat on his bed, "I was wondering why I heard meowing. What did you bring it here for?!"

"It didn't have a home, so I figured I bring it with me." Ren answered, trying to give a good argument.

"Is that so, huh?" Sojiro answered, his body expression saying he wasn't totally approving the cat being here, "Look, this place is a restaurant. Animals are a no go..." He looked at the cat, then back at Ren as he sighed, "Though, I guess you might stay on good behavior if you've got a pet to take care of... Just keep it quiet when we're open for business. And don't let it roam downstairs, or I'll toss it out. Oh, and I'm not gonna take care of it. That's all on you."

"Understood." Ren nodded, and Sojiro walked back down the stairs again, leaving the two of them alone.

"Was that the ruler of this place?" Morgana asked.

"That's Sojiro. He's the guy who's watching over me while I'm here."

"He seemed pretty understanding for someone who keeps you cramped up in this dump." Morgana stated, "Then again, I suppose to normal people, I just sound like a meowing cat."

Suddenly, Sojiro reappeared coming up the steps again, with a plate of food in one hand. "Seriously... It had to keep calling out in that cute little voice..." he stated, "Make sure you wash that dish. So, does it have a name?"

"It's Morgana." Ren answered.

"Morgana?" The man echoed, "I was hoping I'd get to name it..." He walked away, scratching the back of his head at how everything happened with the cat.

"Looks like the chief like me better than you." Morgana chuckled, getting a bit of an irritated look from his 'owner', "And to be honest, this place is heaven compared to Kamoshida's cells."

He paused as he looked at his food, then turned to Ren and continued, "Remember how you guys asked me before about what I am? To be honest... I don't remember anything about my birth."

"Is it amnesia?" He asked.

"I don't know. Maybe the Metaverse's distortions made me lose both my memories and my true form."

"So... You aren't positive if your form is human." Ren summed up.

"It has to be!" Morgana sternly answered, "I mean, why else would a cat be able to talk like this? There's no other possible explanation. There's no doubt that the distortions were what caused me to lose my real self. I'm sure that once they're purged, I'll finally be able to get that self back. And I have a pretty good idea on how to do it, too. That's why I was in the castle in the first place."

He looked at his dish, then added, "Come to think of it, I didn't get hungry over in that world. But man, I'm starving, now..." He started munching, with Ren watching, wondering about Morgana, and his true nature.

* * *

Sojiro was walking back home when he got a call. He looked at the number. It was Guren. He answered it, starting, "Hey, what's up? Go home after dropping Ren off?"

"No. I got home later." Guren answered, "I got caught up with something at school. No big deal, or anything."

"By the way..." Sojiro started, "Did you know anything about a cat that he had found?"

"A cat?" Guren asked, thinking of the only cat she had seen in contact with Ren, "I guess there was one. A tuxedo cat with blue eyes, I think..."

"Yep, that's the one." Sojiro sighed, "Well, he decided to bring it to my place, since it had no home. Quite the talker."

"You let it stay?"

"It will help him become responsible by taking care of a pet." her uncle pointed out, "I made sure he learned the ground rules of taking care of it at my restaurant. He even had a name for the cat; Morgana."

"I see..." Guren understood, "Well, let's hope that cat doesn't get in the way of any other things. You know how they can sometimes be an interference."

"I was just gonna start supper. Wanna come over to eat with Futaba and me?"

Guren paused for a second, then answered, "No, I think I'm good. Got some ingredients here that I need to make something out of before they spoil."

"Gotcha. Well, goodnight then." He hung up his phone, and Guren hung up her's.

She looked at the blank screen, seeing her reflection as she sat down in her bed. She looked out the window, wondering. The same black cat that took on that odd form in the Metaverse now resides in the café of her uncle's. Things were setting up too smoothly here. No way could this be coincidence. It was like fate was bringing Ren, the cat Morgana, and all these other Persona-users together, and close to her, as well. What could this mean? Was she suppose to be a part of them?

"No way..." she told herself, standing up, "I can't allow myself to get attached to any of them, even if they're Phantom thieves like me. Besides, they're too new to all of this. They don't have the experience like I do. They'll slow me down, get in the way, or worse..."

She looked at her desk. The year-old letter of her Sensei, slash-father figure was still in there. There was no way she could part with such an important final message. She had read it so many times, she knew it by heart. Even though he did say that there might be others with this power, she chose not to give anyone any chance to get close enough to know or even work with her in the Metaverse. Not her family, nor her only friend. It's the only way to keep everyone around her safe from that world. That's why she has to find the Treasure before Ren and the others get too far in there. She had to do it, alone.

* * *

Haneru had just finished his dinner when the door opened to his apartment, and Mia came into the room, looking exhausted. "Welcome home, mom!" he greeted.

"Hi..." she greeted, "You seem pretty upbeat considering what happened at your school."

"I know." He answered, "By the way, how is Suzui?"

His mom placed her bag on the kitchen table as she answered, "In a coma. We were doing everything we can to help her, but it is difficult. The physical and psychological damage was pretty grave. She's lucky to be alive at all."

Haneru looked down, worried. Ann would not like this news. She had to be pretty sick with worry over her best friend by now. Well, at least they knew who was responsible for driving Suzui to attempt suicide.

"Still, that poor girl..." Mia stated, taking some juice out of the fridge and pouring herself a glass, "She looked already beaten up before the suicide attempt. My guess is that someone must've beaten her."

"Yeah, and I know who." Haneru growled, "It's that damn Kamoshida. I actually heard some students confront him. He had been physically abusing the volleyball team, including Suzui. However, he wasn't even phased by this. He's going to expel three students just because they confronted him with the truth, and pin the blame of the physical abuse on Sakura-san!"

This news woke Mia up abruptly. "Sojiro's niece?!" She realized, "That's horrible! How could a teacher be so cruel like that!"

"But don't worry. That guy is not gonna get away with this." Haneru declared, raising his phone, "He has a Palace and everything. Not to mention I found a few new allies..."

"Wait... What?!" Mia spilt her drink on the floor, but she was too stunned for words, "You mean you found more Persona-users?!"

"Five of them, actually." Haneru answered, "One of them didn't tell me who they really were, and left before I could know her better. But I know the identities of the other four. Ren Amamiya, Ryuji Sakamoto, Ann Takamaki, and, you won't believe this, a cat named Morgana."

This news really shocked the living day life out of Mia as she grabbed a towel and mopped up her drink. "Those names... I think I met Takamaki-san when she arrived with Suzui at the hospital." she recalled, "Kamoshida said something about a Sakamoto you should avoid, too. And Amamiya as well... My goodness... And you said there was a cat?"

"Yeah. I told them to come over to meet you tomorrow." Haneru explained, "Think you can get off around the time I get home?"

"That could be possible." Mia answered, washing the juice-covered towel, "I do have Sunday and Monday off. I was thinking we could enter the Metaverse on those days, but with this new development..."

"I know, right? Getting to the Treasure will be more exciting with more allies on our side!" Haneru cheered, "Man, I can't wait to introduce you to them!"

Mia finished cleaning up the mess as she looked down for a moment, then smiled as she stated, "Looks like the next generation of Phantom thieves is starting to form, isn't it?"

"It sure is." Haneru answered, taking his dish to the kitchen, "Still, that one girl. She called herself Lioness. Why didn't she stay to show us who she really was?"

"Who knows? Maybe we'll bump into her, and then we can figure out her identity." Mia told him.

"Yeah... Well, we'll just have to focus on that later." Haneru stated, getting a determined look in his eyes, "Tomorrow, we'll set up a plan to infiltrate Kamoshida's Palace, and steal that Treasure!"

* * *

 **Next Time:**

 **To the Throne Room!**


	11. To the Throne Room!

**April 16**

"Dude..." Ryuji muttered, looking up at the apartment complex where Haneru lived with a gaping mouth.

"This apartment building seems fancier than the usual." Ann pointed out.

"It is a step up from where I lived in Toyota, and it is affordable, too." Haneru added, smiling at their reactions.

"If only I was allowed to live in it...!" Morgana moaned, popping out of Ren's backpack.

The newly-formed group of Phantom Thieves had just left school, and joined Haneru to Saitama, where he lived at. All of them got approvals from their guardians and family to come here, and Haneru said his mom would come back some time in the late afternoon to join them.

"Well, let me introduce you to my place." Haneru told them, and he entered the building. After unlocking the security door, followed by the flight of stairs, he unlocked the door to his apartment. They entered in, removing their shoes and replacing them with slippers.

"Holy moly..." Morgana gasped as everyone entered into the living room, slash-dining room area.

"There's so much space in here..." Ann pointed out.

"You sure you guys aren't loaded or something?!" Ryuji demanded to Haneru.

"It's all due to the great salary my mom gets as a hospital nurse." Haneru answered, "She was well known in Toyota for her mix of medical expertise and kindness to her patients to make her one of the best. She got transferred to Shibuya for that same reason."

"It's a step up where I live." Ren stated as he and Morgana sat on the couch in the living room.

"You live in the attic, which is suppose to be a storage place." Morgana pointed out, "Hate to break it to you, but any place is a step up from that place."

"So, where's your room?" Ryuji asked Haneru.

"Right here. I'll show it to you." He answered, opening his door into his room. Ryuji and Ann stepped in behind him and saw the place that was clearly the room of an otaku.

"Wha-what is all this?!" Ann asked, kinda befuddled at first.

"Dude... You weren't kidding when you said you were an otaku." Ryuji recalled, "This place has so much anime and video game stuff."

"I didn't have that many friends growing up, but watching anime and playing video games always made me happy." Haneru explained, "I always loved playing as the hero in a game, making friends and conquering bad guys from beating me. And in anime, there were always so many kinds of characters I loved watching and growing into greater people."

"I know. I always root for them in anime that I watch." Ryuji stated, "It's always awesome to watch someone take a hit and dish it out tenfold to the villains."

"I admit, watching the female characters in anime or any form of tv show was always fun." Ann agreed, "I have to admit, I usually prefer watching the ones that aren't completely good."

"Hey, you got an interest in any of the ladies in anime or video games?" Ryuji asked cheekily, nudging Haneru with his shoulder, "Bet you got a waifu that you like."

"Well... Yeah, I do..." Haneru admitted, blushing a bit, "I always seem to gravitate to those who have tragic backstories, and have pushed through so much just to get to who they are right now. Usually, they are incredibly intelligent, and sometimes raven-haired."

Ryuji looked at the posters, and saw the one featuring a small group of pirates, particularly the one young adult with long raven hair and crystal blue eyes. He also saw a heart drawn near the poster, with the letters 'KH+NR' written within. "I can see that..." he noticed, and Haneru saw who he was looking at, and blushed.

Morgana hopped up onto the table in front of the couch as Ren pulled out a familiar wooden box with a shogi board engraved on top of it. "A shogi board..." Ren noticed, opening up the box to see the crystal pieces within.

"Wow! This is a pretty fancy board you have!" Morgana stated as the trio returned to the living room.

"Oh, that?" Haneru asked, "That's the first and last Treasure I stole."

"This thing is a Treasure?" Ryuji asked, as everyone looked at it closely.

"It's not what I expected a Treasure to look like." Ann muttered.

"Treasures are basically the source of a person's distorted desires." Morgana explained, "It's basically means that whatever started the desires to form is the Treasure."

"Although, when it was in the Palace, it took the form of a giant gold statue of himself..." Haneru explained, "He was pretty full of himself."

"Why don't you tell us about the guy you changed the heart of." Ren suggested.

"Yeah! It might help us in going into Kamoshida's Palace and stealing his Treasure!" Ryuji added.

"I'm pretty intrigued, as well." Morgana also stated, "You might be the only person we know who has stolen the Treasure from another person's Palace."

"Sure. I can explain until mom comes home." Haneru answered. Everyone sat down as he started, "Well, first of all, the guy who I changed the heart of was named Kusingo Oda. He was our landlord, and owned a whole bunch of apartment complexes. But let me tell you, that guy ruled with an iron fist and a sharp mind..."

For the next good, long while, Haneru explained all about Oda blackmailing him and his mom, to the Metaverse app appearing on his phone, then about entering the Metaverse and unlocking his Persona. He relived the entire ordeal for them, and he seemed to be enjoying telling this story.

"...And then, when we finally placed the giant shogi piece into its' place, and we got access to the treasure room." Haneru continued, "But that's when we saw the Treasure. Although, it started off in some sort of cloudy form."

"Cloud?" Ann echoed, confused.

"It wasn't targeted just yet, so it didn't take on a solid form." Haneru stated, "However, in order to make it appear, we had to send out a-."

Just then, the door opened, and Mia called out, "I'm home!" The school students turned to see her enter the room, and she stopped when she saw the group. "Oh, hello there."

"Hey, Mrs. K." Ryuji greeted.

"Mom, these are the guys I told you about." Haneru explained.

"Oh, so YOU'RE the Persona-users." Mia understood, examining the group with care, "Well, it's nice to meet all of you." She noticed Ann amongst them, and added, "We have actually met when your friend was taken to the hospital."

"I'm Ann Takamaki." She introduced herself, "Thanks for all that you are doing to help Shiho. How is she?"

"Still in a coma, but we are doing our best to make sure she comes out of it." Mia assured her, placing her purse on the kitchen table, "I will do everything I can to help her, so don't you worry." Ann nodded in understanding, but still felt really worried.

"So, from what I can guess, you must be Amamiya-san, correct?" Mia continued, looking to Ren, who nodded in response, "Your father had the same messy hair when he was your age."

"You knew my dad?" He asked, surprised.

"He was in the same classroom as me." Mia explained, "Solitary child, but kind." She looked to Ryuji, who caught her gaze and greeted, "I'm Ryuji Sakamoto. I was this guy's first bud since he arrived at our school." He patted Ren's shoulder at the person he was indicating.

"I see..." Mia understood, looking lastly at the cat, "Then that must make you Morgana, right?"

"It's an honor to meet such a beautiful, veteran phantom thief such as yourself." the cat greeted, already swooning a bit at Haneru's mom.

Mia was pretty surprised at hearing Morgana's voice, stating, "So you really can talk! That didn't happen in the past, from what I remember. Then again, we never had animals join us back in the day."

"I'm not an animal! I'm a human, or at least was..." Morgana defended.

"You're right. Sorry." Mia apologized, starting up the kettle to boil some water, "Can I get you kids anything? I do have some different kinds of tea bags."

Everyone chose the tea they wanted, with the exception of Haneru, who got himself a soda, and Morgana, who was given milk. When Mia sat down, they explained the situation with Kamoshida from their own perspectives, and what they tried to do to expose him for the monster he was.

"...Dammit! I just want to punch that asshole in the face just talking about all of this!" Ryuji growled, gripping his teacup tightly.

"Believe me, back in my day, there were people with far worse crimes under their belt than him." Mia stated, frowning at what she heard, "Still, that doesn't excuse him of harming the future adults in the school, or trying to expel the two of you for such a petty reason, and put the blame of the abuse on someone else just because of their bad reputation."

"Guren is stuck-up and stubborn, but she isn't as bad as people make her out as." Haneru stated, "I mean, Kamoshida said the same things about Ryuji and Ren, and look at them. They are not bad people, either."

"And the fact that I was called out as his 'girl' was so wrong." Ann added, "I only spent time with him for Shiho's sake. But he wanted more than I would allow, and look what he did to Shiho!"

"So, what's our plan of attack?" Haneru asked his mom, "We need to infiltrate his Palace, find a secure route to the Treasure, right?"

"Agreed, but we need to be prepared." Mia stated, looking to the four, "Haneru and I have infiltrated a Palace before, and were well equipped for the job. However, with a bigger crowd like this, we need to be even more prepared. We need better equipment, along with medicine for healing up and overcoming fatigue in the Metaverse."

"Well, you are a nurse. Surely you can give us the meds needed for our journey in the Metaverse?" Ryuji assumed.

"Unfortunately, I don't have free access to the hospital's medicine." Mia retorted, "I will get into trouble if I take too much of it for our missions."

"Agreed. It might get too risky if you lose your job for our sake." Ann understood, "We're gonna have to get it from another source."

"Leave it to Ren and I." Morgana assured them, "We have a good idea as to who we should go to."

"We do?" Ren asked, confused.

"Don't worry about it. I'll tell you later."

"As for grabbing gear, I know a place where we can get some pretty good model guns and stuff in Shibuya." Ryuji assured them, "Just leave it to me there."

"I think I can also look into another place." Haneru added, "I heard rumors about a good place in Akihabara when I visited there last week, saying something about extremely good recreations of fictional weapons."

"You really think those would work in the Metaverse?" Ann asked.

"As long as the Shadows believe them to be real, they will act just like real weapons." Mia stated, looking to Haneru, "But remember, they have to LOOK real. Plus, you need to get a job in order to buy them."

"Why do you think I was hanging around in Akihabara in the first place?" Haneru asked, "I was actually looking for job employment there."

"And you weren't looking at all the otaku shops, which it is famous for, huh?" Mia added, her eyes narrowing at him. Haneru sheepishly looked down, confirming her suspicion.

"Then it's decided." Morgana stated, "We'll get the things we need for our mission. Let's hit the Palace tomorrow."

"That'll work, since we don't have school." Ryuji stated.

"And I'm off tomorrow and the day after, anyways." Mia added, "We should all get together tomorrow afternoon at your school so we can start our infiltration." The team nodded in agreement, knowing what each person needed to do.

"Right. See you all tomorrow!" Haneru told them as they stood up. Mia and Haneru walked the other four out the door and out of the building, waving them off.

"Welp, I best go and find that shop in Akihabara." Haneru decided, "Who knows? I might even get a job in that place, too." He raced off, leaving Mia shaking her head at her son. Knowing him, he would probably be more distracted by the otaku shops than the actual job-hunting.

* * *

Meanwhile, Guren had just finished playing music for customers at Café Leblanc, and was heading home. Recently, when she was not distracted from entertaining guests or schoolwork, she couldn't help but think about the group of Persona-users she ended up meeting yesterday. It was strange that she had not met any others like them in the past year, and now, in the past few days, they start popping up like the flowers at the shop she worked part-time at.

"Amamiya, Sakamoto, Takamaki, and Kurosawa..." she listed out the names of those who have the power to wield Personas, "Two of them were already attendants at the school I go to, and the other two just happen to move close to where I live, too. And that cat... I have no idea where that thing came from, but it now lives with Amamiya. Just what the hell is going on here?"

She stopped in her tracks, pausing to think for a moment, wondering what could all this mean. Finally, she growled, then made a noise of exasperation as she messed with her hair, roaring, "I DON'T GET IT AT ALL!" Some of the civilians noticed her tantrum, and she calmed herself as she scurried away from the eyes looking at her.

"How could so many people end up unlocking the power to wield Personas in the same exact Palace?!" She asked herself, "The timing is too crazily good! And why now?! My life was just fine without all this extra baggage coming and interfering with me doing the right thing and bringing justice to those villains who are around me. But suddenly, here they all are, popping up one after another, and now they know about me! Well, the me in that world. They don't actually know that it's really 'me' me... Do they?"

"Talking to yourself in general public?" asked a voice in front of her, "You know, that might just lead to doctors like me thinking you're delusional." Guren looked up and saw the same punk style-wearing woman who was at the coffee shop when Ren came home before. Only now, she wore a typical white lab-coat that is worn over a short black dress. She accessorizes with a red grommet belt, but she still wore the choker, necklace and heels as before. Guren knew who this was; Tae Takemi, the alleyway doctor and physician who lived in Yongen-Jaya, and owned a small time clinic in the place as well.

"Just vocalizing my frustrating thoughts." Guren assured her, "I'm not crazy. At least, not yet..."

"You never know." Tae told her, "Those tests I did with you might come with some nasty side-effects. I might need to do another examination on you..."

"Please don't." Guren prayed, backing off, "I barely walked away from the last one you did on me." Considering her infiltrations into people's Palaces and the underground subway did leave her battered and bruised, she chose to go to her clinic to get supplies to heal her during infiltrations, not to mention to patch herself up. In exchange for keeping this quiet, Tae made her do some...rather body-enduring tests. She said it was all for new medicines she was trying to develop, but Guren always assumed they were for her amusement. To her, prison was sometimes more relaxing than that clinic.

"Well, if you do feel anything is off with your body, don't hesitate to come to me and explain any symptoms." The doctor told her, "My door is always open for you, you know?"

"Thanks. I'll make sure of that." Guren assured her.

At this point, she looked and saw Ren approaching down the street, looking up to see Guren and Tae. Her eyes narrowed, especially when she saw Morgana pop out of his shoulder bag, saying, "That's her! The woman in the lab coat. She's the doctor who prescribes medication after a quick examination. With sketchy rumors like that, she might just be the kind of doctor who could help us."

"Guess we'll make something up in order to get some medicine from her." Ren decided.

"It is the only choice we got." Morgana agreed as they walked towards her.

"Is that someone you know?" Tae asked Guren as he got closer.

"Just someone my uncle's taking care of."

"Excuse me." Ren spoke up, "We met at Leblanc before. I heard you were a doctor."

"That's right." Tae answered, "Is something the matter with you?"

"...My body is feeling lethargic." Ren stated, "I was wondering if you could prescribe something to help me out."

As Tae looked up and down him, Guren looked to Ren. It was clear he wasn't feeling lethargic, but he did have the look of someone wanting to get something from Tae Takumi. Obviously, medication for the Metaverse. While she knew this was a smart idea, the fact was that she didn't really want this guy to be going to Kamoshida's Palace in the first place. Still, there was one part of her, deep down, that knew he had the right, as he was involved with Kamoshida, like she was now.

"Seems to me like you might be due to stress." Tae stated, "I might suggest some painkillers, or maybe sleeping pills." She looked to Guren as she stated, "Actually, you might've said something to me similar when we started doing examinations last year..." She turned back to Ren as she stated, "Meaning you knew about the rumors about me, and came to me for an ulterior motive, isn't that right?"

Ren was quite taken aback. He wasn't expecting her to catch on so quickly. Then again, she might be a really experienced doctor, despite the rumors, so she could tell from a glance if he was perfectly fine. What surprised him, though, was the fact that last year, Guren was asking for something similar.

"I told you, I have my reasons why I need medicine." The said Sakura girl sighed, "I thought doctors have a confidentiality law when speaking about what they give their patients. Why are you blabbing about my deal with you to him?"

"Guess it was a slip of the tongue." Tae answered, causing Guren to roll her eyes, "Fine, I'll give you some medication, but only to heal your body. You seem pretty earnest, and you don't look like you'll be any trouble." She handed him a bag containing a packet of medicine, which he took with interest. "I run a private practice, so all the medicine I dispense is original. I have a license to make my own formulas. Course, Guren Sakura, here, has been useful with the examinations I had her do. She has been an excellent guinea pig."

"Please don't call me that..." Guren groaned.

"Thanks for the medicine." Ren thanked her, "It'll really help. I'll be sure to take care of myself."

"Great. It's nice that you're so quick on the uptake." Tae stated, "Saves me the hassle. Still, I wonder what you kids are using the medicine I give you both for... Guess it's not my problem."

Just then, a cleared throat could be heard from behind the doctor, and she turned to see a man that was older than her arrive on the scene, and judging on his expression, he was waiting for Takemi. "Excuse me." She told the two of them, and she walked over to the man, asking, in a casual tone, "What's the reason for your visit? Are you sick? Maybe in the head? Whatever it is, if you would just come to my private practice..."

"Don't play dumb with me!" Barked the man, getting Guren and Ren's attention, "You're the only one who could have developed that type of medicine. Rumor has it, it's a drug so potent, it can give a person unlimited power."

"Really? That's news to me." Tae responded with a shrug.

"Developing experimental drugs, medicine, and herbal remedies violates all health regulations." The man pointed out, "Are you attempting to create a super-stimulate? A drug like that will only become a social issue. You're a disgrace to the medical community!" Tae clicked her tongue in response to this accusation, looking irritated by the man.

As the man continued to talk down to her, Guren stated, "Come on, let's go. I've seen that man a few times, and he hates 'kids' eavesdropping on conversation." They walked away, leaving the two continuing to argue as they went back to the corner practice.

As they wandered away, Morgana stated, "Seems like that doctor is hiding some super medicine. If it is as strong as it sounds, it might come in handy at the Palace." Ren nodded in agreement.

Guren, feigning ignorance that the cat could talk, simply stated, "That feline sure speaks a lot. Hope it's not causing too much of a ruckus during business hours at my uncle's shop."

As they reached the corner where they would part ways, she continued, "Listen, I know full well about the rumors about you getting expelled and me getting blamed for Shiho's suicide and the physical abuse on the volleyball team. Rumors spread fast in that school."

Ren paused for a moment, wondering if he should respond. However, it was Guren who spoke up before he could say anything in reply. "Listen, here's a word of advice; Don't jump into any place you are unsure of. If the risks of losing are too high, then don't play the game. Let others who know how to deal with those kinds of things handle it."

"What are you saying?" Ren asked, finding it hard to translate her cryptic message.

"I'm saying I'll figure out a way to make sure Kamoshida doesn't expel you, or places the blame on me. You just act like the good schoolboy you're suppose to be, and don't be stupid. Everyone has limits, and you have less thanks to your criminal record."

"But... I thought you had one, too." Ren pointed out.

Guren glared at him as she stated, "Yeah, but I learned a thing or two from my series of arrests, and what I can and can't do. You should learn what your limits are, too, before you end up screwed up." With that, she walked away from him, leaving him alone.

Morgana popped out of the bag as he stated, "That girl does feel like she has experience in stuff you're dealing with. I wonder what she means when she says she'll find a way to make sure Kamoshida doesn't follow through with what he has planned for the two of you? I mean, the only way to stop him is to change his heart. With your special powers, the experience from Haneru and Mrs. Mia, and Ryuji and Lady Ann pitching in, we'll be able to steal Kamoshida's treasure for sure!"

He looked at Guren as she rounded the corner and disappeared from view. Something about what she said gave him a weird feeling. It was if she knew that where he would go to change the gym teacher's heart was dangerous, and that he would be in deep trouble if he ventured into there recklessly. She was right. He was still getting use to his powers and all the fighting, and so were the others, with the exception of the Kurosawa family. Whatever the case was, Ren knew he had to do this. He had to follow through with the plan.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Akihabara, Haneru was, as his mom predicted, investigating all the otaku shops. However, he knew that there was one shop in particular he wanted to see. On one street was a shop that, from what he heard, was well known for replicating all sorts of armor, weapons and accessories from anime and video games. The prices were pretty high, but the fact that the pieces of work were pretty darn realistic made it worth it.

The moment he entered into the shop, he gasped in excitement. He entered into a place that clearly otaku heaven for him. The shelves were low, with multiple kinds of things from so many anime and video games he recognized. He saw the Heart Kruez Armor that Erza Scarlet of Fairy Tail usually wore. He recognized the Speed Shoes worn by Shadow the Hedgehog, complete with a matching set of Inhibitor Rings, though the size was exactly the same for the character, so they were way too small for Haneru. And on the far shelves, he could easily see the series of Keyblades from all the Kingdom Hearts series lined up on the wall.

"This is so cool..." Haneru muttered, looking about, "I wonder what kind of weapons I could pull from this place? Bet there are some cool armors or clothing I could put myself in for protection."

He went to the checker, and stopped when he recognized the familiar black hair styled in a ponytail and clothing of a girl ahead of him. "Is that... Lyra?" Haneru called out.

Lyra turned at the sound of her name being called. She held in her hands a familiar harp to the otaku boy. "Oh, hey there, Haneru!" She greeted, "Fancy meeting you here."

"Just came by to see what kind of stuff they had here." He answered, looking at her musical instrument with intriguing eyes, "Is that... That's Cure Passion's Passion Harp from Fresh Precure!"

"Yeah. Pretty cool, huh?" Lyra replied with a smirk, "Look, it even plays music, too." She plucked the glowing tube lights, which responded to her touch with a note each, before she plucked them together, creating a chord.

"Awesome...!" Haneru muttered, then he struck a pose as he declared, "Precure Happiness Hurricane!" He spun like a top on one foot, but had to stop himself before he got too dizzy. Lyra merely giggled at his imitation of the character.

"While I'm happy you know how this works, it doesn't really work when it's a boy who does the imitation." she pointed out. Haneru rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Are you looking for something?" The owner of the shop asked Haneru.

"Sort of..." he answered, looking about, "I'm a collector of weapons from anime and video games. I'm interested in some sort of quarterstaffs, scythes, sniper rifles, and maybe crossbows. Have any recommendations?"

"Well..." the owner started, but Lyra butted in with a, "I'll show him about. Maybe I can help him with what he's looking for." She wandered off with Haneru, who followed in her wake.

"You come here often?" he asked.

"A lot, actually. I usually make recommendations about certain kinds of weapons and stuff from magical girl anime. I've been trying to get all the devices from Fresh Precure as I possibly could.

"Oh, yeah? What do you have?" Haneru asked.

"Let's see... I do have all four Linkruns, including the keys, their Cure Sticks, this Passion Harp, the diamond used by Eas to transform things into Nakewambeke. Heck, I even have Cure Passion's full attire to my figure."

"Damn! Now that's something I gotta see!" Haneru stated with eagerness, "Course, in my perspective, with that ponytail, you could also do Cure Berry's look."

"True, but I do have a wig." Lyra pointed out, "This shop is pretty darn incredible for replicating everything. They have professional theatre designers, blacksmiths and such working here. All of them love making fictional stuff. Actually, I have an uncle who works for them."

"That's so freakin' amazing!" Haneru exclaimed, "I am so jealous of you!"

"Hey, if you want, I can help you get a nice price on stuff." Lyra pointed out.

"Well, I do have some money to spend..." Haneru looked at his pulled-out wallet, "But I am looking for a job. Got any recommendations for that?"

"Sure. I actually take a part-time job here in this town. I'll set you up with some choices." Haneru was really gracious for her kindness for him, then she added, "Course, I am asking that you come join me and the boys for more dance practice more often. As long as you do that, I'll help you out."

"Of course. I wanna be great at dancing like you guys." The otaku agreed.

He then noticed something and stopped, looking at amazement. Lyra followed his gaze, and she saw that he he was fixated on the collection of weapons from the American anime called RWBY. While all of them were amazing to look at, Haneru had his sights on two weapons; the mechanical red and black scythe called the Crescent Rose, and the long staff known as Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang.

"Holy...these are SO what I would love to get!" Haneru exclaimed, reaching to the staff and taking it in his hands, "This is Sun Wukong's weapon in RWBY! So cool!" He saw the middle part could be twisted and split in half. He did so, and had the two parts of the staff in each hand. He then noticed a button on each of the pieces, and pressed them. They were some sort of mechanism that caused each piece to become nunchucks, with a chain-link holding each piece together, the four individual parts of the staff now showed their flintlock pistol form more clearly than before.

"Okay, now this is seriously cool!" Haneru exclaimed, looking at the nunchucks in each hand, "Although... I really don't know how to use nunchucks."

"Yeah, from what I heard, they're the trickiest kinds of weapons to wield." Lyra recalled, "But it is a cool weapon. I mean, even if you can't use it, it is an awesome thing to collect."

"Thanks, but I think in terms of weapons all around, I would love to start with this one." He looked at the Crescent Rose as he returned the quarterstaff to its' normal form, and placed it back on the shelf, "After all, this is the main protagonists' weapon. What I wouldn't give to get it..." He checked the price tag on it, and whistled. "As I thought; this one's WAY out of my pay range."

"That sucks." Lyra muttered, looking at the price, "Guess considering how well it was made, not to mention the materials, it's no wonder." Haneru sighed, deciding he should come back to this shop on a later date.

The two left the shop as Lyra stated, "I guess that means you should find a job, and I know some good ones around here. But before I give them to you, we need to do some dance practice."

"Wait, what?" Haneru asked, confused.

"Oh, that's right. You aren't aware of one of our rules." Lyra realized, "One rule of the Dance Life crew: If you meet one another, you gotta do some dancing together. Keep up our skills as a team, no matter what!"

"So it's like when two Pokémon trainers lock eyes with each other, that they have to battle."

"Pretty much." Lyra chuckled at the comparison, "Besides, your the newbie of our crew. We need to get you into shape. So, let's go and get warmed up so we can practice on your moves."

Haneru pondered for a second, and decided he had nothing better to do at the moment. Besides, he wanted the list of part-time jobs Lyra had. "Okay, but let's make it an hour or two." he replied.

"Deal. I know a good place nearby for us to dance freely at." She ushered him down the road as they went to the area where they planned to dance at.

As for everything else that day, well, things went as good as they could for everyone.

* * *

 **April 17**

The next day, Mia got called in for an emergency that involved a psychotic breakdown. While it disappointed the boys when she texted this, she assured them that this happens a lot, and that they should just continue prepping for the infiltration on Kamoshida's Palace. Ann was at the hospital to see Shiho, so the two ladies decided that they could be in each other's company. Ryuji decided to show Ren the place where he got the model gun, and Morgana came along with them. Haneru decided to go and find a part-time job using the list Lyra gave her. As for Guren, she chose to help out her uncle at the store until she got a text from her BFF Makoto, saying that she was done with her cram school.

"Sorry to pull you from helping your uncle out." Makoto apologized, as the pair ventured through Shibuya's underground mall, "I just really felt like I needed to talk with you."

"Well, the guests were pretty miffed by my leaving them..." Guren muttered, thinking back to some of the disappointed looks from the kids, "...but I'll make it up to them eventually. Besides, who am I, your one, true friend, to keep myself away from you?"

Makoto half-heartedly smiled, then looked down with a worried expression as she started, "Listen, I know about the rumors at school. They say you were responsible for the physical abuse on the volleyball team, and that you were the reason that girl tried to commit suicide."

Guren looked at her, then looked ahead of him. No thanks to Kamoshida that everyone in the school knows about this. And if she knows about that, then she must know about Sakamoto and Ren also going to get expelled from school. However, in Makoto's eyes, Guren was the only problem here.

"I...I know you would never do such a thing." The Student Council President continued, "Your quick-tempered, but not violent."

"Gee, thanks for dulling it down like that..." the accused said in a sarcastic tone.

"And I have been with you a lot. You don't even talk to Suzui-san, let alone approach her. There's no proof that you were responsible for her drive towards suicide, nor causing physical abuse to the volleyball players. They don't have anything against you."

"Except I'm known for being in jail more times than anyone in that school put together, and that the person putting the blame on me has more influence on the school than even the principal. No one is gonna vouch for me apart from you, because I'm feared or hated by everyone in the school." Guren's blunt, nonchalant demeanor towards what she had said didn't improve Makoto's worries for her. In fact, it made her feel worse.

"This isn't a laughing matter!" She told her, "I'm scared for you. If this goes through, you will be expelled from school, and not only will you be sent to juvenile hall, but you won't be able to return to school, or any other school. This will be worse than any of the false accusation charges you have on your record!"

"I know what's at stake, and I am not taking this lightly either." Guren assured her, "I do know what will happen to me if this pulls through. But, I have a good feeling I'll be able to get out of this. And...I guess I can say that Sakamoto and Kurosawa will get through this, too."

Makoto looked to her for a moment, then stated, "You know, whenever you say 'you have a good feeling you'll be able to get out of this', you somehow are right. And I'm not just talking about half the time. I mean almost all the time. That is strange to me..."

Guren did feel a bit hesitant. She probably should've known better than to give hints like this that something odd was up about her being freed from accusations. This was something she had to avoid doing in the future from now on.

Makoto didn't continue this subject, and instead followed up with, "But this...I'm still trepidatious. I have been working my butt off since I heard about it on getting you out of this, and I'll continue trying. But I can't seem to get someone to defend you. I'd hate to say it, but at this rate..."

"It's the curse of being the Shujin Jailbird." Guren pointed out, "Besides, my future isn't the only one on the line."

"I know. That boy who is living with your uncle under probation, along with Sakamoto and Mishima, are all gonna be expelled coming next teacher conference meeting. While I am concerned about them, I worry about you the most. You got out of sticky situations because of sheer luck and easily-persuaded accusers. This situation is much more troublesome because everyone knows you, and Kamoshida is not so easy to persuade."

' _That's where you're wrong, Makoto.'_ Guren mentally argued, ' _It's thanks to the Metaverse that I've escaped most of my false accusations so far, changing their hearts and making them confess their crimes. Kamoshida is no different than every criminal I've faced so far. I will prevent his accusations from following through if it's the last thing I do!'_

"Sorry. I know I'm being a bother by saying these things." Makoto apologized, bringing Guren back to reality, "I know you are fully aware to the situation, and I'm just making it worse by saying these things, not to mention being unable to do much to stop this..."

"Don't worry yourself, Makoto." Guren assured her, "I know you are trying hard to defend me, and that is the best thing I could ever ask from my best friend." She grabbed Makoto's shoulder, and pulled her into a hug, despite being in the center of the Underground Mall. The fact that she did this in a popular place like this was quite embarrassing to Makoto, but she didn't point this out. "You do what you can to save me, and I'll do what I can to save myself." She told her, "Things will work out, I'm sure of it."

Guren's words relaxed Makoto, who pulled away from her, saying, "Thanks, Guren. Although, for a future reference, you probably shouldn't just hug me out of the blue like that, especially with so many people seeing us. They might get the wrong idea." The two looked about. They did catch the eyes of some people, all of which were either young couples or high school students, wondering if they two were 'a thing'.

"Well, I don't know. You are pretty cute, Makoto." Guren teased as she walked away, "Who knows? We could totally be a couple."

"Okay, now that's just creepy." Makoto retorted, knowing she was teasing, "I like you, but not that far!" Both of them shared a good laugh at this, forgetting their worries for the time being.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the hospital, Ann was sitting back in the lounge, after watching her best friend still in a coma for as long as she could. Though she knew she couldn't hear her, Ann still spoke to her about planning to change Kamoshida's heart, and that she will avenge her for what the PE teacher did. A part of her still blamed herself for putting Shiho in this state, though it wasn't as bad as she felt before.

"Here..." Ann looked up at the voice to see Mia standing there, holding a drink towards her. "It's herbal tea. They say that helps calm your heart." she explained.

"Thanks..." Ann thanked her, taking the drink as Mia sat next to her, "Are you on lunch break?"

"Took a late one. The patient was quite troublesome with the psychotic demeanor he was in." she explained, "I have seen the symptoms before, but it's something I'm still trying to take care of.

Ann looked to her concerned demeanor as Mia looked away from her, then she started, "So, why did you choose becoming a doctor in the first place, if you don't mind me asking?"

Mia paused for a second, then answered, "I guess it was due to my husband, Noriaki, that I gradually led towards this profession. See, I was there when he unlocked his own Persona. The day after, I unlocked mine. If you didn't know, a Persona is awakened when someone finally unleashes the rebel inside of their heart that they hide by masking their heart."

"So, what were you like before you unlocked your Persona?" Ann asked.

"Quite the teacher's pet, and always someone who tried to follow the expectations of the people around me." Mia chuckled at this past self of her, "I was always told to ignore the needs of my fellow students around me, and just make sure I was fully prepared for a bright future. But afterwards, I realized that I can't just think about my own future, but I also needed to care about those around me, and take care of them with kindness and the gifts I had. Hence, why I became a doctor."

"So you really did change people's hearts back in the day?" Ann asked.

"Yes. Actually, the first person I changed the heart of wasn't the PE teacher, but the principal of the school I attended."

"The principal?"

"Oh, yeah. She saw great things in me, and placed me and her school on a pedestal, wanting all the students were gifted with intelligence or other such things benefiting the school to be recognized world-wide. Anyone or anything else was better off left behind. That's why in the Metaverse, her Palace was a stage with a model runway, with the star students displaying themselves in such sickly glamour, wearing clothes of her designs, while all other students were locked away down in the basement, like rats waiting to be exterminated."

"What kind of cruel person would do something like that?!" Ann demanded, "How could someone like a principal be using their own students to benefit their school and themselves?"

"In the broad stroke, all human beings are selfish. They want something for themselves, and the worst ones will step over anyone or anything to get what they want. And the worse part is that people allow them to get way with it, even though they know it's wrong. Kamoshida or my high school principal were no different from one another. I believe that is why we, as Phantom Thieves of the Metaverse, were created. We have the power to bring their sinful, corrupted hearts into the hearts into the light. Noriaki, my friends and I all went and changed her heart, and we'll do the same with Kamoshida's."

Ann looked down at the herbal tea. Mia's words gave her hope that they could succeed in not only avenging Shiho, but making sure Kamoshida got what was coming to him. The determined look on Mia started to reflect on Ann's face, as she believed they would succeed in their mission.

Suddenly, Mia felt her smartphone vibrate, and pulled it out, reading a text. "It's from Haneru." She told Mia, "Looks like he's found a part-time job Akihabara. He's working at one of the otaku stores there as a courtesy clerk."

"He's found a job up there?" Ann asked as Mia texted back.

"At least he's making use of his time. Plus, he's getting paid, so he'll be able to buy things for our heists...or he'll spend it all on video games and toys like he usually does." Ann laughed at this comment, recalling his room, and seeing all the stuff he already had. Why did he need anything more?

"Now, come on. That tea doesn't taste as good when it cools down." The doctor pointed out, "How about I teach you a few things on what we doctors do to help take care of patients afterwards?"

"Is that okay?" Ann asked, "There won't be anything gross to see, right?"

"Don't worry." Mia chuckled, "These are pretty much basic and simple things that I'll show you. There's no blood or broken bones to be seen in what's coming." Ann sighed in relief, and continued sipping her tea, while the two young ladies talked.

* * *

Back at Café Leblanc, Ren had just returned from a long day out trying to find ways to get prepared for the infiltration. He had a limited amount of money for buying weapons from the shop in Shibuya for now, but he did plan to go find a part-time job as soon as he could.

As he walked back upstairs, he and Morgana heard one of the customers tell Sojiro, "Hey, did ya here? Apparently, that subway driver from the accident was acting really odd during his testimony hearing."

"You talking about that psychotic whatever thing people're going on about?" Sojiro asked with curiosity.

"Yeah. I heard it completely alters your personality." the customer explained, "The news is saying the driver couldn't even speak when they tried asking him questions."

"There's no way a preposterous story like that could be true." Sojiro scoffed, "Oh, and sorry, but we're closing soon."

"Hmph, how rude." the customer retorted, "You know, if it wasn't for your niece and her music, this place wouldn't get many customers. Although, your coffee's actually not half-bad. The beans must be only able to survive in this sorry state of a store thanks to Guren."

"I appreciate you liking my niece's music. Thanks for coming." Sojiro growled, only tolerating his disrespect towards him because he complimented Guren.

"Hmph. I only say this out of politeness, but... thanks for the coffee." The customer muttered, placing his payment on the table as he stood up, "Next time, I'll only come back when Guren is here." With that, he left the store.

"Sheesh, what a pain..." Sojiro sighed, then he looked to Ren, who stood there, "What do you want? If you're bored, go wash some dishes or something."

A few seconds later, Guren entered through the door, saying, "Hey, uncle Sojiro. Saw you gave the last customer that came here with your usual 'kindness'." Her emphasis on the last word stated that she was use to him delivering this personality to his customers.

"Hey you know my policy: It's all good as long as the shop doesn't fail." Her uncle retorted, "I'm not gonna go wearing a fake smile."

"And it almost screwed us over big time last year with that reporter." Guren pointed out, "And yes, I know I was partially responsible for that mess, and he was twisted, but you could've eased up on the guy."

"What happened last year?" Ren asked, curious.

"Some reporter came in and tried to run us down on purpose by setting up scenarios that made my shop and Guren look bad." Sojiro explained, "But he ended up having a change of heart soon after and withdrew his report on my shop. That was the closest this shop ever came to closing up for good."

Ren looked to Guren, and saw something that was only there for a brief second. Guren looked down with a sort of sad look on her face, as if she recounted a hard moment during the period Sojiro was talking about. As it turns out, she was thinking about the hardest part of that time; when she lost Daichi after the Palace of the said reporter collapsed when his heart was changed.

She noticed she was being watched by Ren, and shook the expression off of her face as she placed on a fake smile and said, "It was pretty crazy last year, but it turned out alright."

"Right. I think it was around that time that you started going to jail less and less." Sojiro recalled, smiling at the thought, "You still go there from time to time, but not as often as you did."

' _Cause that's when I had the power to change my fate by changing the criminal's hearts.'_ She told herself, then she continued, "But back to what I said before, if you at least don't brighten your mood towards others, you'll end up on the streets. At least try to put on a fake smile once in a while, for my sake and 'her's'." By 'her's', she meant Futaba.

"As long as I'm here, the world leaves me be." Her uncle sighed, "No annoyances or troublesome people to deal with. It's like my own personal hideaway."

"Until I come in here and, like the Pied Piper, bring actual customers in to listen to my music." Guren stated, "Or would you rather that I don't come here to help keep this business running?"

"Don't be like that, Guren. You know I like seeing the smile on people's faces when they see you entertain them. They don't become annoying or troublesome, apart from the messes they leave behind."

"Then I guess it's a good thing you have someone as cleaning service for this place living in your attic." Guren thumbed at Ren, "That leaves me time to do other things. Well, just wanna say hi. Take care, grumpy Sojiro." With that, she left.

"I swear, that girl..." Sojiro shook his head, "That strange sense of humor she has is something else. Still, one thing she said was true..." he looked to Ren, "You should at least try and be useful around here. If this place closes, you'll be in just as much trouble as me. In any case, I'm leaving now. Don't cause any trouble." He started to close up shop as Ren went upstairs with Morgana in his backpack.

Upstairs, Morgana hopped out of his backpack, and instructed him to clean off the desk nearby so he could teach him on how to make infiltration tools.

"Now then, let me provide the materials this time." Morgana told him, "I'll show you how to make a lockpick. There are all sorts of infiltration tools that can be made, and they are beneficial when exploring Palaces. For example, you might encounter a locked chest inside of a Palace, which can be unlocked thanks to the lockpick. You can get materials to continue making things like this from stores or even Shadows in the Metaverse. You're still wet behind the ears, right now, but as time goes on, you'll learn to make more and more kinds of tools more quickly. For now, follow my instructions, and we'll make that lockpick."

By 'we'll', he really meant Ren, as Morgana only told him step by step instruction on how to make the tool. It was difficult, but Ren actually made the tool thanks to the cat's instructions. "Great! We should be able to use this." Morgana stated, looking at the lockpick, "We should be ready now. Mia said she would be available to join us tomorrow. Let's get some rest so we can head into the Palace." Ren nodded in agreement, and went to his bed to go to sleep.

* * *

 **April 18**

The day of the infiltration was about to commence. The day of school went as smoothly as they could hope. Kamoshida greeted the two soon-to-be expelled boys with a sickly smile on his face. The team knew that he would take that smirk back once they go and change his heart. Guren didn't know this plan was gonna take place, though, as she had plans to go and infiltrate the Palace after school, as well. She prepared herself after she separated herself from Makoto that afternoon.

As soon as school was over, Ren, Morgana, Ryuji, Ann and Haneru waited on the rooftop until Mia said she was close to the school. "We have until May 2nd to steal Kamoshida's heart." Morgana instructed, "If what you guys said is true, then that's the day when the school board meeting takes place,"

"Right. We just need to go to that castle and steal the Treasure of Kamoshida before that, right?" Ann summed up.

"We really need to secure and infiltration route two days before that." Haneru pointed out, "So on the last day of April is what we need shoot towards, otherwise, it will not work."

"Why's that?" Ryuji asked.

"Very clever. So you know what needs to be done before that." Morgana stated with a cat smirk.

"If we do it the same way as my mom and I did it before." Haneru replied.

"I really don't get it. Can either one of you tell me why we need those extra days?" Ryuji asked, really confused.

"All will be told in time. Besides, we're gonna get that route secured long before that." Haneru answered, getting a buzz on his phone, "That's my mom. She's here. Let's get going."

He led Ren, Ann and Morgana out, with Ryuji crying out, "Dammit, just tell me already, would you?!", and raced after the group.

They made their way downstairs and into the alleyway outside the school, where Mia stood there, her purse under her arm. "Is everyone ready?" She asked them.

"Ready as we'll ever be." Haneru answered.

"Quick question; where will the Treasure be in Kamoshida's Palace?" Ann asked.

"More likely, it's in the very depths of the Palace." Morgana answered.

"If it's a castle, then the most obvious place would be maybe the treasure room or the throne room." Haneru assumed.

"Either way, it will not be easy." Mia instructed, "Getting into the Palace is no straight-forward feet. We'll need a map to know where we're going, which should be in the Palace. A good hint to go by is that the more distorted the area is within a Palace, the closer we are to the Treasure."

"So, we're just gonna have to find a way to the Treasure, right?" Ryuji summed up.

"Pretty much." Morgana answered, "But we'll have to be careful as we go in. Remember, there are Shadows, too."

"Then let's not waste any time." Ren decided, pulling out his smartphone and producing the Metaverse app, "Let's go in." He clicked on the search history, and pressed the one that got them into Kamoshida's Palace before. With that, the area distorted around them, and they entered the Metaverse.

When they appeared in front of the drawbridge that led to the Palace, the four others looked to the Kurosawa pair, and saw Mia, now Pixie's, attire for the first time. "Damn..." Ryuji, now Skull, muttered, "I thought Ann had a good look, but your look is smoking hot!" Mona also seem to blush and swoon at her looks, as well.

"Hey! That's my mom!" Kong retorted angrily.

"Agreed. This wasn't a look that I wanted for people to leer at." Pixie stated, producing her scythe in her hand as a threat, "So you'd better watch your tongue, Sakamoto."

"Y-Yes, ma'am." Skull stammered, looking at the scythe with fear. Mona also decided to refrain from getting her angry.

"It does seem pretty revealing and a bit glitzy." Ann pointed out, looking at herself, then at Mia, "Don't those wings get in the way?"

"I thought so, too. But they do seem to not be noticed as easily as you think." She answered, looking at her wings, then at the others, "I must say, all of you do have some good looks on you. Morgana, you definitely have a drastic change from being a simple cat."

"This is just how I look in this world." he answered, putting on a pompous looks as if to try and impress Pixie, "And for your information, it's Mona now."

"Oh, yeah. By the way, I would like to know what your code names are." The eldest phantom thief asked.

"A code name?" Ann echoed, confused.

"We're phantom thieves. Everyone of us needs codenames." Kong explained, "I'm Kong, and my mom is Pixie."

"Right. And I'm Skull." Ryuji followed up, poking a thumb at Ren and Morgana as he added, "He's Joker, and that's Mona."

"Judging by your costume..." Mona started, examining Ann's look.

"I mean, she's got that tail and stuff, so..."

"Maybe 'Sexy Cat'?" Joker decided.

"Wait! Is that what you're going to call me from now on?!" Ann question with a blush, "I am SO not down with this!"

"Agreed. But, then it was better than what the others thought of before." Pixie muttered with a sweat-dropped expression, "My first 'name' was 'Tight-Top'."

"Tell me that wasn't dad's pick...?" Kong prayed with a shudder.

"What do you wanna be called then?" Skull asked Ann.

"Um, something better than just a little cat..." Ann muttered, then her eyes lit up with an idea, "Maybe 'Panther'? That sounds pretty cool, doesn't it?"

"Well, panthers are smooth, stealthy and strong." Kong understood.

"I was looking at it made me sound... ferocious." Ann stated.

"She's a cougar!" Mona mewed.

"Don't call me/her that!" Ann and Pixie growled at the cat creature, shutting him up.

"Well, then it's settled. You will be Panther." Joker understood, nodding to Ann, now taking in her new codename, "Now, let's go infiltrate Kamoshida's Palace."

They were just about to make a move when suddenly, Kong sensed the area distort around them, and he turned to see someone slowly appear before them. "We got company!" He told the others, getting their attention to the scene. They all looked prepared to see who will appear. When it became clear, they could see Lioness appearing before them, putting her smartphone away after using her Metaverse app.

She looked up, saw the group before her, and her eyes narrowed. "Oh, it's you guys.,," She sighed.

"It's Lioness!" Kong realized.

"I thought I made it clear that you guys were too wet behind the ears to be able to infiltrate this Palace." She told them, "Why don't you go back to reality before you get yourself killed, and I'll take care of this guy's Palace."

"Hey, you don't have to tell us what to do!" Skull growled, "Besides, we all have a vendetta against Kamoshida, and we won't leave till we make him pay!"

"What about you?" Joker asked, "Do you have something against Kamoshida?"

"Um, duh? My attire says I'm a threat to him." Lioness pointed out, indicating her Phantom Thief attire, "That's why I'm gonna take care of him, so get out of the way, newbies."

"Stop calling us that!" Kong spat, "We know what we're doing! And we even have someone who is a veteran phantom thief; My mo- I mean, this young lady here! Her name is Pixie!"

Lioness looked to the said woman, and was slightly surprised at how old she looked. "An adult?" she asked, not realizing there was someone as old as Daichi also able to use a Persona. She also couldn't help but feel like she knew this woman from somewhere, but she couldn't put a finger on it.

Pixie approached her with a stern expression as she asked, "You sound as if you are an experienced phantom thief. Mind telling me how long you have been able to wield a Persona?"

"I'd say...about a year?" Lioness calculated.

"A-A whole year?!" Skull gasped.

"So she really has more experience than we do..." Panther understood.

"Well, then I can say you have more experience than these children behind me, but not nearly as much as me." Pixie continued, "However, that does not give you the right to put down others because they lack the same kind of experience as you. Instead, why don't you join us on our infiltration, and teach them the stuff they don't know about already. You might even learn a thing or two about being a phantom thief from me and them, as well. It never hurts to get extra support."

Lioness looked away from her, irritated for two different reasons. One, the same reason as to why she hated adults, because of how they treat her like she doesn't know any better, and that she should listen to others because they are older.

The second reason she was irritated... was because Pixie had a point. She had been working alone for an entire year, and that everything she had learned up till now was from her own self-experience. She didn't have any other Persona-users to rely on, nor did she want any. She already lost Daichi, she didn't want to lose another because they were too weak to defend themselves, or that she wasn't strong or fast enough to help them. And with someone like Pixie, who also had been a Persona-user much longer than her, being part of this crew of misfit phantom thieves, they might be able to accomplish a lot together.

After some time mulling through the facts and chances, she sighed in frustration, then started, "I'm not a teacher or a babysitter, so if you don't know how to do something, or if you slow me down, don't expect me to come save your rears. As far as I'm concerned, we're only together because we have a common enemy, and that's it! I'm not here to be friends with ANY of you. So let's see how much we can accomplish... together." The last word almost didn't come out of her mouth.

Pixie looked to the others as she asked, "So, is everyone in agreement? Are you going to be fine with Lioness being with us?"

"I'm cool with that." Kong answered, with Joker nodding in agreement.

"It would be nice to have another girl in our group." Panther added with a smirk.

"I dunno about this..." Skull muttered, "Something about her irks me. Another part is just plain scared of her."

"Even so, it would be nice to have two very skilled phantom thieves as part of our crew." Mona stated, "I believe you guys can learn a thing or two from her. But don't forget I can still teach you things, too."

"Sure you can, cat." Lioness scoffed sarcastically, walking past him, "Now come on! We stick out like sore thumbs here! Time to infiltrate this Palace!"

"All right! Let's start fresh and get goin'!" Skull declared.

"It's game time from this point forward!" Mona added.

"Leave it to Lioness and I to teach you anything if you don't know something." Pixie added.

As the group walked through the gate of the castle, Joker sensed something, and turned around. There, standing in the corner of the place, was a glowing blue cell door, with, to his surprise, Justine standing there, waiting for him. The cell door opened up to a blue, misty area, as Justine said, "My master would like a word with you."

Joker looked to her, then the door, and decided to obey for now. After all, it wasn't like Igor wasn't gonna do anything harmful to his mission...yet. He stepped through, floating through a realm of chains for a moment, then landing right back inside his cell in the Velvet Room once more, his attire switched from his phantom thief attire to the prisoner attire. Justine returned there next to Caroline as the latter declared to Igor, "The prisoner Ren Amamiya has returned!"

"Well done. It seems you have remembered my words..." Igor told Ren, "You truly make it worth rehabilitating you."

"What does that mean?" Ren asked, finding his words somewhat offensive.

Igor merely chuckled as he answered, "I am not attempting to withhold information from you. The essence of the rehabilitation that you must complete will be explained in due time. Once you encounter friends who share your aesthetics and discover your place in reality, only then, will I explain it all. Such a day should not be far off."

Igor paused for a second as he shifted the subject of conversation, then continued, "This time, I wish to introduce you to the aid we are providing."

"Aid? What kind of aid?" Ren asked.

"Due to your potential in wielding the power of the wild card, you can handle more than one Persona. That power holds infinite possibilities. We will assist you in nurturing that potential. To that end, we must execute your Persona."

"What?!" Ren gasped, bewildered. They plan to kill off his Personas?

Igor chuckled as he answered, "Do not be alarmed. Personas are personalities that exist within you. Thus, you will only be discarding old personalities to have them be reborn as new ones. By discarding your old identity, you give way to a new one. Hence, we call that process 'execution.' Think of it as the fusion of your Personas. Now then, let us try an actual Persona Fusion."

Through his instructions, Ren chose to discard his Pixie and Jack-o-Lantern. The execution was...rather gruesome, involving a pair of guillotines used by the twin wardens. They placed the Personas in bags, and placed their heads within the holes of the guillotine, and dropped the blade on them. They suddenly became energy as they merged together, forming a new Persona; a pinkish-purple devil with a stinger-like tail sticking out from between his legs. "I am Incubus. I shall unleash your desires into your enemies. Kehehee!" He suddenly turned into a mask, which returned to Ren.

"Ah, how impressive..." Igor stated, "A stronger Persona has been born from the body and blood of the old. It shall be your new strength."

"What do you mean?" Ren asked, still not completely sure what had just transpired.

"It's worth will be made clearer when you return to the field of battle." Justine replied.

"Gather Personas, and bring them here." Igor instructed, "Gather a great many, execute them, and continue to give birth to even stronger Personas. Developing your powers as such will play an integral role in the stand against ruin."

"So that your rehabilitation goes well, we have a variety of rituals to choose in regard to executions." Justin explained.

"And depending on the effort you put in, our master might consider further development of new rituals." Caroline followed up, "Cry your tears of joy, Inmate!"

"Your heart is steadily gaining the strength of rebellion." Igor pointed out, "It seems your rehabilitation is proceeding smoothly, a joyous fact, indeed. In anticipation of this, I have prepared a gift for you. I hope that you shall accept it."

Ren suddenly felt a new power surge within his very eyes. They glowed as he felt the power being taken into him. All of a sudden, it was like he could feel that he could see things clearer, far beyond that of the normal.

"What I have given you is known as the Third Eye." Igor explained, "That is a thief's skill, allowing one to tap into their sixth sense and see what is hidden in the dark. I believe you can handle it now. May you continue devoting yourself to further rehabilitation."

"Now then, if you have any requests, we will heed them." Justine followed up, "For now, it is time for you to return to your allies." Ren felt the area suddenly distort around him as he was flung back by some unknown force.

* * *

"Joker... Joker!" Ren blinked, and he looked about. He was standing in the exact spot he started from before he entered into the Velvet Room. Skull, Mona, Panther and Pixie were standing around him, looking curiously at him.

"Something wrong?" Mona asked, "You were just standing around all of a sudden."

Joker looked to them, then back at the cell door behind him. ' _Did they not see me enter that?'_ He wondered, ' _Guess to my teammates, it looked like I wasn't moving...'_

"Why're you spacin' out like that?" Skull asked, "It's kinda hard to tell what you're thinkin' sometimes."

"Funny. My husband seemed to act like that back in the day." Pixie recalled, "I believe that was when he was..."

"Let's just say he's a man of high caliber." Mona summed up, "We're counting on you, Joker!"

He looked to the group, then asked, "Where're Kong and Lioness?"

"Oh, Lioness got tired of waiting for you, so she went on ahead." Panther explained, "Kong followed her so as to not leave her alone in this place."

"We'd better pick up the pace so we don't get left behind." Skull declared, and the group raced towards the hole into the window.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kong and Lioness had just eliminated a couple of Shadows, with the pair of them placing away their weapons. "We should be able to give the others a clearer path towards where we're at like this." Kong noted, looking back the path they took, "Let's hope Joker doesn't take too long."

"They have Pixie. I'm sure they'll be fine." Lioness assured him, though her attitude told him she really didn't care either way, "For now, let's keep going. We need to reach that roadblock I encountered before."

"Roadblock?" Kong echoed.

"You'll see..." she stated, wandering up the steps as they made their way to the next floor.

As they snuck along, Kong started off, "So, Lioness, how many Palaces have you conquered?"

"Hmm... I think five of them." She answered, "Although, they weren't as elaborate as this one. What about you? Have you even dealt with a Palace before?"

"As a matter of fact, I did." Kong answered, "I dealt with some guy who was our landlord, and tried to blackmail me and my mom. He was quite the control freak, and all because he didn't want to lose any power or reputation to anyone. I mean, he even gave trouble to Pixie back in her early years as a Persona-user."

"And she didn't stop him then?" Lioness asked, "Why didn't she change his heart before?"

"Because she and her comrades were able to handle him outside of the Metaverse. He was a police officer who tried to use his authority and tactical wits to put them in a corner. But thanks to my dad, he protected them, and ended up disgracing him."

One thing caught Lioness's attention from what he said. "Wait a minute. Are you meaning to tell me your dad was involved with Pixie somehow?"

"Oh, right..." Kong hesitated a bit at first, then decided to throw caution to the wind, and admit, "Actually, Pixie is my mom. My dad was also a Persona-user back in their high school days, too."

This bit of news baffled Lioness. Now she knew where she remembered Pixie; back when Ren moved into Café Leblanc, she bumped into Haneru and his mom, Mia Kurosawa. This was already crazy enough to find out that she was actually Pixie, but to add in the fact that Haneru's dad also was a Persona-user was just flippin' ridiculous. ' _How does this otaku boy end up having such a family with such a deep connection to this world?'_ She wondered.

"So, I told you a bit about me. What about telling something about you?" Kong asked, "What was your first Palace you broke into?"

Lioness thought for a second, thinking back to Itsuki's Palace, and what transpired. She could tell him, but that might lead him into figuring her out IRL. Not to mention it was a tough place to look back at.

"No comment." She answered, sneaking on ahead.

"Oh, come on! No fair!" Kong moaned loudly.

"Shh!" Lioness raised a finger to her lips, and whispered, "You want the whole castle to come after us?! Zip your lip, and quit complaining!"

"But I just told you something about me IRL!" Kong argued, "Can't you tell me something about who you really are?!"

"I told you before; I am not here to make friends with you, or any of the others. We are only working together because we have a mutual enemy. So let's stop the whole 'getting to know you' deal, and start with the 'searching for the Treasure' deal."

She moved on ahead, with Kong starting to not like Lioness's attitude. "Geez, now I know how some anime heroes feel when working with moody, solo characters." He grumbled, catching up with her.

* * *

Not too far behind, the rest of the Phantom Thieves were picking off any weaklings that were replacing the ones that Kong and Lioness defeated.

"Arsene!" Joker shouted, summoning the gentlemen thief Persona into battle, who unleashed feathers from his wings in the form of Dream Needle, striking the Berith and making him topple over, fast asleep.

"Take care of this, would ya?" He asked, performing a Baton Pass with Panther, as she got empowered by the technique.

"Dance, Carmen!" she shouted, and her mask became her Persona, unleashing a blast of flames down at the sleeping Berith, knocking him out.

"That takes care of that!" Skull cheered.

"There's still more approaching!" Pixie warned him, as two Kelpie and an Agathion were coming at them down the hallway.

"Got it! Let's go, Captain Kid!" Ryuji ordered, summoning his Persona to the field, and blasting one of the Kelpie into oblivion.

"Cordelia!" Pixie shouted, and her Persona summoned into action, unleashing a blast of wind that hit the Agathion hard and made it roll along the ground, passing the thieves as it did so before crashing into the wall behind them.

They were distracted by the Shadow that fell behind them, they almost didn't notice the Kelpie coming at them, unleashing a blast of wind like Cordelia did. "Zoro!" Mona shouted, and his Persona summoned up, enduring the blast with ease, protecting everyone.

"Leave it to me." Joker declared, "Come, Incubus!" He summoned the new Persona he gained, who thanks to using the Persona Pixie in its' fusion, gained access to using an electric attack that shocked the Kelpie, destroying it.

"Whoa!" Mona gasped.

"I don't remember you having that one!" Skull pointed out.

' _A second Persona?!'_ Pixie noticed, ' _But that means... could he be...?'_

Joker recalled the mask as he turned to the Agathion that slowly rose up from the fall it took, moaning, "You meanies! Why did you have to hurt me so badly?"

"Hey! You're the one who attacked us first!" Skull barked.

Joker pointed his gun at the Shadow as he demanded, "You know you can't beat us. Surrender."

The Agathion looked up at him, cowering a bit as he stated, "P-Please don't kill me! I don't want to die!"

"Then join our cause. We're taking the fight to Kamoshida, and we're stealing his Treasure."

"Y-You guys are challenging King Kamoshida?!" The Shadow questioned, "As scary as that sounds, you sound pretty cool saying it." It then glowed as it gasped, "Wait a second... I'm starting to remember! I'm not in service of King Kamoshida. I am the piece of the heart that drifts throughout this world. I am Agathion, and I shall aid you in your cause." It suddenly turned into a mask, and merged into Joker's, who closed his eyes, feeling the new ally join his cause.

"How did he do that?!" Panther demanded.

"I don't know, but he does have that power." Mona explained, "He can wield multiple Personas, as well as make Shadows join his side."

"It's all starting to come together." Pixie understood, stepping forward to Joker, "Then that means... you're the Trickster!"

Joker seemed startled a bit. The only other person who ever called him that was Igor in the Velvet Room. How could she know the same name as him? Was is due to her being a veteran?

"Trickster?" "What's that?" Skull and Panther questioned respectively.

"A term we give to the one who wields the wild card." Pixie explained, "They are especially gifted and have the power to wield multiple Personas at once. They are also able to do other things us normal Persona-users cannot do, but in short; they are the ones with the greatest power among us."

"How do you know all this?" Joker asked, wanting to know the answer.

"Because my husband was also a Trickster." Pixie answered, "He could wield multiple Personas like you."

"Holy shit..." Skull gasped in a bewildered tone.

"So, this guy isn't the only one who has had this power?" Mona asked, "What was his name, by the way?"

"Noriaki Kurosawa." Pixie answered, "His codename was 'Harlequin'. He was gonna be Joker, but didn't like the name, so he changed it to that instead."

"Harlequin... That's actually pretty catchy." Skull said with a grin.

"No. I like Joker instead." the said character stated.

"As fascinating as this is, shouldn't we keep going and find the others?" Panther asked.

"You're right. For all we know, they could be halfway to the Treasure by now." Mona stated, "Let's get moving!" The five of them charged along the hallway, trying to catch up with Kong and Lioness.

* * *

Meeting up with one another didn't take a short amount of time. In fact, it took the crew maybe twenty minutes before they managed to all were on the third floor of the East Building. Inside the library, Kong and Lioness looked about the place, with the latter explaining, "This is the place where I got stuck at. I pulled out every book in this place. I checked the shelves in the other rooms in this building, both this floor and the one below. However, I had no such luck. And trust me, I examined every book here, and nothing seems out of place. I just don't get what I am missing."

She turned to see her 'ally' sitting on a sofa couch, his eyes closed. "Hey, are you listening to me?!" She demanded, "Why are you just sitting there?!"

"Sorry. I'm thinking things through." He answered, "You said that you pulled every book in here, right?"

"Yeah. And very few of them had words in them, and no hints to go onward. Plus, no doors opened up when I pulled the books out of the shelves."

Kong paused for a moment, looking about the room. "You placed the books back where they belonged?" He asked.

"No. Seems like the Shadows here cleaned up the mess I left for them. I think that explained the boost of security in this place."

"Right. However, they seem to be missing a few..." he stated, standing up from the chair and looking at three particular parts in the library, "Look here. You can see that in three different parts, there are books missing from the shelves."

"Yeah, so?" Lioness asked, wondering where he was getting at.

He looked at her for a moment, then asked, "You are looking at things too one-dimensional. The oldest trick in the book is that a secret passage or compartment would appear using hints in the books or by taking books off the shelves. It's an old trick, but I did like it. However, what if you're looking at things in reverse. The three books that are missing here; what if they were the keys to opening up the path forward?"

She looked at the three empty sockets where books should be, and her eyes shrunk in shock. She struck her forehead with the palm of her hand hard, growling, "My God... How am I so stupid?!"

"Takes an otaku mind to figure out an elaborate trick like this, sometimes." Kong grinned, tapping the temple of his forehead.

After a moment of frustration where she let an otaku best her in a puzzle like this, she then asked, "So then, if you're so smart, then what kind of books should we be looking for? I don't see any out of place here!"

"They have to be scattered about this place." Kong stated, examining one of the shelves with the missing book, "You said it yourself that there are books all about this floor. Maybe searching them should uncover out of place books. As for what they are...the shelf here is more or less all about Kamoshida, so maybe there's a book that should be like it here."

"Well, I know that shelf is all about many of the school girls at Shujin Academy, with Ann Takamaki as the main source." Lioness pointed out, "As for the other place, it is the list of all the members of the volleyball team, including some other students. I know the boy, Ryuji Sakamoto is amongst his most hated books."

"In that case, we should investigate the floor to see if we can find those missing books related to those subjects." Kong summed up, "Care to go out and find them?"

"No need..." said a voice from behind. The two were startled as they turned to the entrance and saw the rest of their team at the door. "We found the books you were looking for." Pixie stated, looking to Joker, "Or rather, Joker found them."

"Hey, you caught up!" Kong greeted as they all entered the room, closing the door behind them.

"Man, you guys were really far ahead of us!" Skull growled, "What the hell?! Couldn't you wait for us to catch up?!"

"Sorry about that..." Kong apologized. Lioness's response wasn't so apologetic.

"I didn't want to waste my time with you guys standing around and doing nothing. I knew time was of the essence, and so I took care of what needed to be done. Besides, the two of us managed to clear an easier path for you guys to get here. I don't hear any 'thank you's for that."

"You little...!" Skull growled.

"There's no need to get so rude with us, you know!" Panther snapped, "I don't know what your problem is, but you are not making it easy for us to work together!"

"Alright. Break it up." Pixie told them, glaring at Lioness, "It wouldn't hurt to be nicer to your fellow comrades, no matter how much you think of them as a hinderance. We made it this far, so let's keep going forward, together."

"Tch! Whatever." Lioness scoffed.

"A-Anyway, where are these books you mentioned?" Kong asked, trying to change the subject.

"Right here." Joker answered, pulling out three books from his jacket, with the labels 'The Slave Book', 'The King book', and 'The Queen Book' written on them.

"Perfect! Was it tough to find them?" Kong asked.

"Not really." Mona answered, "Seems like Joker's got a keen eye for things that were out of place."

"More like a Third Eye skill." Pixie retorted, "At some point, my husband also gained that ability, allowing him to see things that normal eyes couldn't."

"Well, whatever it is, we have what we're looking for." Kong stated, "And Lioness and I both know where they go."

"You do?" Panther asked as he took the books from Joker and handing two of the books to Lioness.

"Yeah. Look here." Kong pointed to the shelf he mentioned to Lioness before, "It's all about Kamoshida. As sick as it sounds, The King Book looks right in place with this shelf." He placed the said book into the socket.

"Right... The section all about the girls at Shujin must mean the Queen Book goes here." Lioness understood, inserting the book, then to the final socket, "Then that means the one containing the students he abuses must be for the Slaves Book." She placed the final book into the socket.

Suddenly, there was a click, and everyone looked to see one of the bookshelves suddenly move back, then it and the wall slide to one side, revealing a hidden room behind it.

"Whoa, it opened up?!" Skull gasped.

"It worked!" Kong cheered, turning to Lioness, "See that?! Told you so!"

"You just got lucky, okay? No need to brag about your achievements." Lioness scoffed, "C'mon. Let's see what's in here."

They all entered into the room, which looked like some sort of candle-lit shrine you would find in the back of a person's closet. They found something that twisted all of their stomachs.

"Ugh... The hell is this room?" Skull questioned, "There's tons of pictures of Suzui in here! Wait... It's all pics of her...?"

"My god... Did he have an obsession with that girl?!" Kong asked, disgusted at the sight.

"It seems he did." Pixie answered, looking at the wall, then at some of the torture devices nearby, "His twisted obsession with the girl, the abuse he did to her. Did he have some sort of twisted lust over her? Or was Shiho Suzui just the person he loved to abuse the most?"

Joker looked to Panther, who was the most agitated from the group after seeing this . He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, getting her attention. "We'll may him pay for this." He assured her.

"Y-Yeah... Definitely" she answered, "I feel more motivated to do this now..."

"I'm sure it'll feel awful, but we should search this room." Mona told the others.

"Found it." Lioness answered, pulling a pair of things off from a desk nearby, "The second part of the map that I didn't have, and a medal that'll fit right into the lock mechanism that blocked my path before."

"Let us see the map." Pixie asked, taking a look at it, with Mona hopping up onto a barrel nearby to look over her shoulder, "Seems like we got the complete set of the map. Now all that's left is to find where the Treasure is located."

"Right here." Mona pointed, indicating the throne room, "It has to be here..."

"That's a weird-shaped building... Could it be a tower or something?" Panther asked.

"A place where Kamoshida can see all through the entire city from his throne room. Seems like it would fit." Lioness examined the map further, "In any case, we're about halfway there."

"All right! Let's hurry over there!" Skull declared, and the team left the room hastily.

The team doubled back to a door with cell bars blocking it. On the side of it was a lock mechanism with a ram head as part of it, with a ring and chain link coming out of its' nose.

"Right here..." Lioness muttered, placing the medal into a socket in a socket, which fit it perfectly. The ram head then lowered itself for the ring to be within arms' reach, and the young lady pulled it down. The bars blocking the door suddenly disappeared into the floor, opening the path for the thieves to go onward.

"Sweet! Looks like it worked." Skull triumphantly stated.

"Of course it did. Did you really we went through all that trouble for nothing?" Lioness asked, "Let's save the cheering until we reach the Treasure, okay?" She opened up the door, and snuck along the path.

"Jeez, can't she just lighten up?" Skull asked, really irritated by Lioness's condescending attitude.

"As much as we dislike her attitude towards us, we have to work with her for now." Joker told them, looking on ahead, "She's our best chance at reaching that Treasure."

They descended down some stairs, discovering a Safe Room. However, Lioness chose to press onward rather than rest up. They all continued onward, and found themselves inside a church hall.

"This place is huge... yet there are no guards?" Mona questioned, "That seems suspicious..."

As they stood at the back of the place, the area distorted, revealing what this place was in reality; the gymnasium. "Wait, was that... the gym?" Panther asked.

"I did remember the first time I came here, the guards planned to go to church for worshiping Kamoshida's name." Kong recalled, "Guess this was the place."

They all noticed that right at the front of the place, where something like Jesus or a representation of God should be, there was, instead, a massive statue of Shadow Kamoshida. "I get it... The gym's some kinda holy place for him." Skull understood, "He's a god there."

"The ego this man has is truly a disease that he doesn't want cured." Pixie muttered as they went down the red carpet in the middle of the isle.

"I can't believe he can think like that... especially after what he did to Shiho..." Panther growled.

"How the hell he can still act so carefree without feeling any guilt for what he did is just freakin' sick!" Kong growled.

"Don't worry. He'll be singing a new tune once we change his heart!" Pixie assured the crew.

Lioness didn't join the others down the isle, deciding to give them the slip so she can move on ahead when she heard a voice say, "I see... So you're the ones who tampered with the library. It had been a complete mess for a while, though we weren't sure who it was..."

Kong looked back at Lioness as she and everyone else looked about, wondering where the voice came from. He knew she was the only person to reach as far as the library, so the messes were her fault in this case.

"It seems my time waiting here has paid off..." the voice continued, and from out of nowhere, a gold-armored guard captain appeared in between the party and Lioness. "Just as the ape there said, this place is a holy ground for our great King Kamoshida." It continued, "It is preposterous for miscreants like yourselves to come waltzing in like this."

"This place shouldn't even be a thing to begin with!" Kong retorted angrily, "The only kind of 'god' this guy should be is a false fool of one!"

' _It's already ready to fight. Why are you antagonizing it even further?'_ Lioness mentally questioned.

The knight suddenly transformed into its' Shadow form; an Archangel, as it growled, "You will pay for foolishly defying King Kamoshida with your lives!" It rose into the air, and he started to build up energy.

"Look! He's trying to do something!" Mona noticed.

"It's charging up to perform a strong attack!" Pixie noticed.

"Then lets take it down before it has a chance to attack!" Skull declared, with Joker, Kong and Panther nodding in agreement. They each summoned their Personas, with Joker summoning his new Silky Persona. Joker's unleashed an ice attack, Skull and Kong's Personas unleashed electricity, and Panther's Carmen unleashed a fireball. The Shadow avoided most of the attack, but got hit by the icicle storm.

"You will pay for that!" It roared, dashing down at Joker with its' blade ready. Joker tried to leap back to avoid the slash, with Silky coming in to guard her user. The Archangel slashed Silky hard, causing her to scream in pain. Her pain was shared with Joker, feeling the injury on the same part of his body, making him fall onto his back.

"Joker!" Panther cried out.

"I got it!" Pixie shouted, summoning Cordelia, blessing him with healing energy.

"Let me do that, too!" Mona added, summoning Zoro, who did the same thing. Joker felt the energy heal his wounds, getting him to rise back up onto his feet again.

"Okay, let's not do that again..." Skull muttered, shivering a bit at the damage his partner took.

"Look! It's charging up again!" Kong noticed, pointing to the Shadow, who began charging itself for another assault.

Suddenly, there was the sound of a sniper rifle, hitting the wing of the Archangel, and making it falter. Kong looked to his mother, who didn't have her sniper rifle out. Instead, it came from Lioness, who retreated her firearm as she scoffed, "Honestly, you guys see one of your own get hurt badly, and you start to panic? Why do I even bother still hanging around with you guys?"

She then pulled out her rapier as she called to the Archangel, "If you wanna pick on someone worthy to give you a good fight, then look no further! Come at me!" She covered her masked face as she shouted, "Alanna, come!" The crew saw her summon her Persona for the first time, which was her knight, who leapt up and unleashed a thrust with its' blade, which was parried by the enhanced strength of the Archangel's blade.

Joker looked to Lioness, hoping to see what her face looked like. Unfortunately, she covered it with her hand, with only her eyes peering through, intentionally hiding her identity from the others. This was slightly unnecessary, as only the mane of her mask came off. However, she didn't even want to see them notice that.

"You will pay for your insolence!" the Archangel growled, entering a sword fight with Alanna, before getting a good slash in that caused the Persona to double back, and for Lioness to grimace a bit in pain.

It began charging up for another attack, and Alanna unleashed an icy blast from its' blade, trying to stop it from succeeding. However, the Shadow was still able to fight as it charged forward, and cleaved Alanna through the chest, causing it to fly into the wall in the far back, causing Lioness even more pain.

"A reckless frontal assault is not gonna work!" Pixie called out, "We need to find a way to distract it for a full-force assault!"

"Easier said than done. It's flying too high for us to get the drop on it!" Skull pointed out.

"And we'll be too injured to continue before its' out of commission!" Panther added.

"Not to mention more reinforcements will be coming soon." Mona finished.

As Joker and Kong looked to Lioness's Persona, seeing it struggle a bit against the Archangel, the phantom thief otaku started to think, ' _C'mon... There's gotta be a point where I was in a similar situation.'_

He then thought back to when his mom and he were in a bind between the two Shadows before facing Oda. How did he overcome that? ' _...By looking at things from a fantasy point of view!'_ He realized, ' _In that case, time to dive into my fantasy, and find a solution!'_

He closed his eyes, escaping reality as he pondered back to every video game and anime he had played and seen. He dove back to the old days, into the old-school video games that he had played. Suddenly, he recalled something. The very first video game he had ever played. A 1992 video game about his favorite blue hedgehog and twin-tailed fox. He could still remember the boss theme of that game pretty darn well, and he knew every boss battle by heart. It was the third stage that he recalled, which the boss used totem poles to fire arrows at the character. But those were his downfall...

"Got it!" Kong realized, startling Mona and Joker next to him.

"Wh-what?!" Mona questioned his sudden exclamation.

"You have a plan?" Joker asked.

"A creative one, but it just might work." Kong answered, turning to the two, "But we'll need to work as one. Joker, you, Panther and Skull distract that Shadow, and make sure you get close to that statue in the back. Get Pixie to heal up Lioness." Joker nodded, and raced towards the others.

"What about us?" Mona asked.

"You're gonna be the centerpiece of this strategy." Kong explained, "You confident in your light footwork and nimble speed?"

"Please. Look who you're talking to!" Mona stated confidently, "I can take on any challenge you dish out at me!"

"Good answer. Let's move!" Kong led Mona to their position to ready what he had in store.

Lioness was panting, recalling Alanna as she slumped on the side of the wall. She looked up at the Archangel as it readied its' blade, ready to dive into a stab. "This is what you get when you go against King Kamoshida!" It declared, about to attack.

Suddenly, gunshots were hitting it from behind. It turned to see Joker, Skull and Panther, all with their firearms out, shooting up at the Archangel, who tried enduring the attack. "Get away from her!" Panther shouted, firing her submachine gun at it.

"You dare try to challenge me, you worms?!" The Shadow demanded, diving down at the trio with a raised blade, slashing at them as they avoided getting hit.

Lioness was questioning their motives when she felt energy healing her. Pixie had arrived on the scene, healing her of her injuries. "Are you okay?" She asked the young one.

"I'm fine." Lioness stubbornly answered, feeling her wounds fade as she straightened herself up, "I had everything under control."

"Looks to me like you were struggling." Pixie pointed out, causing the young lady to turn away, refusing to admit she was right, "But don't worry about a thing. I think Kong has a plan." Lioness blinked, and looked to Kong, who was standing in the middle of the isle, close to the statue, with Mona at his side. What could he do that she couldn't? He didn't have as much combat experience as her.

Kong pulled out his crossbow, and steadied his aim at the wall. He then fired one shot after another, making each bolt hit the wall and get stuck there. After about seven shots, he stopped firing, seeing the seven bolts forming a makeshift staircase going up to one of the Kamoshida statue's hands. "Will that work for you?" He asked Mona.

"It's gonna get tricky, but I believe I can do it." Mona answered.

"Then do it, to it!" he ordered, pointing to what he made for the cat creature as he dashed forward.

Mona then leapt to one of the bolts, stumbling a bit as he tried to catch his footing on the narrow stem of it. He felt the bolt start to dislodge from the wall, and had to act fast. He leapt from one bolt to another, causing them to slowly dislodge from the wall each, but giving him enough time to catch his footing and leap to the next. It took a few seconds, but he managed to make it to the hand of the Kamoshida statue.

"Yes!" Kong cheered.

"How in the heck did he know THAT would work?!" Lioness questioned, bewildered at what she had seen, "That climb should be impossible!"

"For us, yes. But Mona is lighter than all of us." Pixie pointed out, "Plus, he has cat-like balance, so only he could pull it off."

Lioness was stunned at the fact that Kong managed to create an insane idea like that, and have it pull off. She then saw what he was planning next, as the Shadow was backing away by the elemental attack delivered by the trio that were distracting it, their Personas out in front of them.

"Now!" Kong shouted to Mona.

"Take this!" Mona shouted, leaping up and readying his scimitar. The Archangel didn't even expect Mona to appear above it, and got back-slashed by the cat monster. It howled in pain as it fell to the floor, crippled and wounded.

"Now it's your turn, guys!" Kong shouted to Joker, Skull, Panther, and Pixie.

"Everyone. Go All-Out!" Joker ordered.

"Time for a delivery of pain!" Skull declared as he and the other three became blurs as they peppered the Archangel with an All-Out Attack. When they came out of it, the Shadow was barely hanging on for dear life, but it couldn't move.

"I...will not...lose...to you thieves..." it growled, raising its' head. It then felt something approaching from above. A millisecond later, it was stabbed down by a sword, causing it to gag in agony. Alanna had reappeared, and did a drop thrust onto the monster's back. It lost all of its' energy, and the Archangel faded from existence.

Everyone turned to see Lioness in the same stance as she took when she summoned her Persona before, recalling it back to her mask. When the mane reappeared, she dropped her hand, revealing her masked face again as she growled, "That final blow was satisfactory." She stated.

"Man... Didn't realize those things could be that tough..." Skull panted.

"Oh, believe me. There are far worse things down the line as you'll find out." Pixie warned him, "But don't worry. You'll get stronger as time goes on, and learn techniques that'll help battles become easier."

"I hope you're right about that." Panther prayed, "Still, that idea of Kong's was a gamble."

"I knew Mona had the balance and the light body to pull it off." Kong stated, grinning at his achievement, turning to Mona, "Nice job, buddy."

"I have to admit, that was a pretty neat trick." the cat creature stated, "I wouldn't have thought of a makeshift plan off the bat like that. You and Joker are definitely more strategic than anyone else here."

"If you're done patting yourselves on the backs, we need to keep moving!" Lioness told the group, "Or do you not hear the reinforcements arriving?" They all perked their ears up and heard the sound of clanking armor coming their way.

"Quick, up to the rafters!" Joker ordered, and they all raced to some boxes, making their way up to the rafters of the church hall.

As they crept along towards the door that was on the same floor as them, Lioness, who was right in front of Pixie, stopped and looked down at the scene of all the soldiers looking about, wondering where the intruders were. However, it was really what she had just been dealt with that concerned her.

"Something the matter?" Pixie asked her.

"Nothing. I'm fine." She answered in a stubborn tone, and she crept along. Pixie paused for a second, then moved on ahead.

As they ventured through the halls and made their way to the annex, Lioness kept looking at Kong, wondering. She had always dealt with challenges head-on, like she was doing with that Archangel, and come out on top. True, she got injured from time to time, but that was just part of the job to take them out. Kong, on the other hand, was not only able to find an effective way to put down the Shadow, but he and everyone else worked together in order to achieve such a goal. Lioness had been alone in the Metaverse, fighting like she always had for so long, that the thought of working together with others was alien to her. And yet, this otaku, along with this group of misfits from and not from her school, ended up working together to be more effective than her. The thought of it all both annoyed her to no end, and slightly made her feel a bit jealous. Why weren't people like this with her earlier in her life?

"Hold on!" Joker stopped them, and they all slowed to a halt. They had made it up the spiraling stairs up the annex, and found themselves on the roof of the castle, in some sort of courtyard. They could see the biggest tower ahead of them.

"Hey, take a look at that!" Skull pointed out the tower.

"Without a doubt, the top of that tower is where we're suppose to head to." Pixie deduced, as she and Mona looked at the map, "It matches the destination on the map."

"So the Treasure's up there!" Panther understood, grinning eagerly.

"Hell yeah, we did it!" Skull cheered, "So... where's the entrance?"

"Let me see..." Lioness shoved Skull aside to get a better look at the tower.

"Hey, watch it!" Skull demanded, raising a fist to her, but she ignored him.

"I see the door ahead, but those guards in the courtyard look pretty strong." She pointed out, "We should avoid them as best as we can. Plus, in my experience, the main door to places like that will not be the right way."

"Okay, so where should we go instead?" Kong asked.

"Up there." Pixie answered, pointing off to the tower, "I see an open window, with a path that'll lead us straight to it."

"Well, as the old saying goes, nothing ventured, nothing gained." Mona stated, "Let's go, everyone!"

They snuck past all the guards, who had an aura around them that exemplified the level of strength they seem to have. For curiosity's sake, Skull did try to open up the door that they saw before, only to find it locked, as Lioness predicted. He almost got caught had it not been for Joker pulling him into hiding before proceeding to some crates that they climbed up to the upper rooftops.

"I told you so." Lioness huffed as she and the others waited for Skull to catch his breath from the close call.

"Sh-Shut up! Not like you knew 100% that it was locked."

"Next time, learn to take advice from those with better experience than you." Lioness stated before leading the others towards their actual way into the tower. Skull grumbled, and followed from behind. It took some footwork, but the team managed to find an out-of-the-way path to the central tower, where they made their way in.

When they entered, they found the floor was mismatched, with some parts rising above and other parts below the actual level. "Wha-what's going on?!" Panther demanded in shock.

"It's just like that crazy oversized shogi board we were at." Kong recalled their last heist.

"The distortion is getting stronger." Mona pointed out.

"Right. And that's a sure-sign way of knowing that the Treasure is near." Pixie followed up.

"Then let's get a move-on!" Lioness ordered, racing on ahead, "The sooner we get this Treasure, the sooner I can get you guys outta my hair!"

"You don't have to put it that way..." Kong muttered as they all pursued her.

Climbing the tower was a bit of a task, with the path rough and difficult to go about, not to mention the amount of disturbing statues of girl bodies, minus the limbs and head, wearing white shirts and gym shorts. They were fortunate to find an elevator that, when they took it down together, revealed a secret passage that led straight back to the entrance hall of the castle, back to where they started. This was a great find, so that they could find a shortcut straight back to the central tower when they pulled off their actual heist.

Moments later, they arrived at a higher floor, and saw the path forward that led into a rounded room with swaying guillotines that blocked the path. Next to the entrance was a statue of Kamoshida. However, there was something... off about it.

"Dude, what the hell?!" Skull gasped, seeing the swaying guillotines, "No way can we cross this without being split in half!"

"It's a classic security measure." Mona stated, "My tail might be in danger if we try to force our way through..."

"Oh yeah, the same for Panther's." Skull added, "So... what do we do? No way we're gettin' through there as is."

"I can easily get through that." Lioness stated, cracking her knuckles as she looked like she was about to make her move, "Stand back and watch..."

She had just started to make her move when Pixie grabbed her collar, and pulled her back forcefully before one of the guillotines hit her. "Are you TRYING to throw your life away?!" The adult demanded, "Stop trying to act like you are capable of doing something that is clearly impossible!"

"I knew what I was doing!" Lioness barked, "Stop trying to hold me back every time to be with you losers! I don't some stupid bunch of riff-raffs who have not experienced this world long enough, or an adult who believes she's old enough to tell me what to do, to help me steal this Treasure!"

"What the hell, lady?!" Skull growled, "If you hadn't noticed, we've been pulling our own in this place ever since we came here!"

"Yeah. We aren't as useless as you clearly say we are." Panther added angrily, "If anything, we've been trying a lot harder to work with you than make it through this Palace."

"They're right. We have been doing our best navigating through this Palace, and were so close to the Treasure right now." Mona stated, "You only seem to have a problem in wanting to work together with us!"

"I'm the problem?!" Lioness demanded. Her tone was now even more flabbergasted than ever, and it was starting to go into practically sinister, thought not quite there yet. "I have spent an entire year on my own, trying to stop people from making me the solution for all their criminal problems! Pinning the blame on me, and saying it is my fault for what they clearly did wrong. I went in and changed their hearts. Me, alone! No one else! The only time I was not alone in this world was when I met the person who taught me how to be a Persona-user. He taught me how to fight. He taught me how to be a thief. He helped me save my family from a rotten criminal, and died in order to let me live! I'm not the problem! I'm a victim!"

She panted from the speech she had delivered, glaring daggers at the stunned group. For a while, no one said anything. Then, Lioness realized what she had said, and turned away, growling, "Great. So you got me to say stuff about my past. You drove me into my breaking point, didn't you?"

"S-Sorry..." Skull apologized.

"We didn't mean... We were just tired of you hating us so much." Panther muttered.

"But hey, at least we got to know you a bit better." Kong stated, leaning back on his hands on the back of his head.

Pixie paused for a moment, formulating all that Lioness told them. Something about that felt off, but at the same time, familiar. Someone who taught Lioness to be a phantom thief and use her Persona passed away last year, protecting her.

"Tell me, who was this person that taught you to be a Persona-user?" she asked, at long last, "Did he have a name?"

"Yeah. His name was Daichi. I think, he said his codename was—."

"Totem..." Pixie answered, surprising Lioness as she finished her sentence. The downcast look she gave was all the young lady needed to know that this person was just as close to her as he was to herself.

"Daichi?" Kong asked, scratching his head, "Wait... Wasn't that one of your friends back in high school?!"

"He was. He was a gentle giant of a man. Discriminated for his height and build. However, he was kind and caring. As a Persona-user, he was strong, and a wall to so many attacks that came at us." She looked to Lioness and asked, "But to think he was the one who taught you to be a Persona-user. I had no idea..."

"You did describe him pretty darn well. That guy was a mountain of a man, and he was strong, but he treated me kindly, even though I...was pretty hostile towards him half the time." Lioness then came to a conclusion in her mind, and summoned her rifle. "Tell me. Does this gun look familiar to you?"

Pixie took the rifle and examined it, tears starting to form in her eyes. "How can I forget about this? My very first sniper rifle." She brushed her hand on several scratches that were on the barrel and such, "I had made so many mistakes, and got this baby banged up from time to time. I looks like it had been modified for better usage since I left it in Daichi's care. Was that you?"

"Yeah. I needed to make sure it could handle the toughest of fights in the Metaverse." Lioness took the sniper rifle back, "Daichi gave it to me during my first heist. It was pretty minuscule compared to so many other things he gave me. More importantly, he gave me a future... Though, it was a future without him..."

"How did he die?" Joker asked, "You said he died saving you, right?"

Lioness looked to him for a moment, then stated, "That's right. When the Palace collapsed, he saved me from being crushed, but was unable to leave in the process. He forced me to leave him behind. He sacrificed his life for someone like me..." She tightened her grip on her rifle, holding back the tears on her memories of her father figure.

"I can understand if you hate me for not being able to save him." She told Pixie, "I regret not being strong enough to save him that day... It haunts me everyday I come here. I'm the reason he's dead, after all."

For another long while, no one said anything. Then, as Lioness placed her weapon away, Pixie came forward and, without warning, placed her in a hug, surprising the young lady.

"At least...now I know how he died." Pixie stated, "I should've figured it out, though. He was always risking his life for those he cared for, and he ended up protecting someone till the very end..."

"You...must be mad at me, aren't you?" Lioness asked, wondering if this hug would become a choking of sorts, "I...I couldn't do anything. I let him die."

"No..." Pixie retorted, "If he died a pointless death, then I would've been mad at you. But he didn't die that way. He let you live, didn't he?"

Lioness looked down at Pixie's chest, her eyes saddened. She didn't expect the person that was closer to Daichi than her to be forgiving her because she lived and he died. It felt all wrong to her. How could person outside of her family be this forgiving to her, when she felt like she needed to do more to gain their forgiveness?

"I don't mean to intrude a sweet moment, but..." Panther's voice got the attention of the two girls, getting their attention. Lioness blushed as she suddenly realized their existence at seeing her in such form. She shoved herself away from Pixie as she cleared her throat, trying to regain her facade again.

"So, we ended up guessing this statue of Kamoshida must be the control that stops the swaying blades." Kong stated, thumbing the said ugly statue behind him, "But it doesn't seem to work without some sort of key. The best I could think of are those sockets where his eyes are at."

"Right. And I bet a couple of the Shadows down below might have those keys." Mona followed up, "There are no other suspicious rooms to look into, like the library before."

"Dude, how many of 'em do you think there are?" Skull questioned, "We can't beat the crap outta all of them!"

"No, but we can target high-ranking Shadows." Lioness answered, "You know those gold-armored ones we saw before? They might have the key on them."

"Let's go back down and see where we might find em'." Joker told the team, who nodded in agreement, and dove back down the way they came.

After going down a few flights of stairs, the team discovered a pair of gold-armored knights, and they hid themselves as they eavesdropped on what they were talking about. "You have one of the keys?" The first one asked.

"Got it right here." The second knight answered, holding up a yellow orb that looked like an eyeball.

"Good! Make sure you keep ahold of it!" The first knight answered, "From what we heard, the thieves are around here. If Kamoshida finds out we got our keys stolen from them, he'll have our heads!"

"Do not worry. I got a full-proof plan to keep them from taking mine so easily." The latter snickered, "They will be totally overwhelmed by what I have in store." With that, the two parted, and the first one went back to pacing the room, looking for the intruders.

The team gathered together as Pixie asked, "Did everyone get that?"

"Sure did!" Panther answered.

"Seems like the eyes are the keys." Kong understood, "But both of those soldiers have one each! It's a lot like that time we split up to deactivate the lock mechanism on Oda's castle."

"Then let's do that then." Lioness suggested, "I'll take one, and you guys..."

"Oh, no you don't!" Pixie retorted, "They are strong Shadows! Who knows if even you stand a chance against them. No, we'll split into one group of four, and one group of three. And since I care for Lioness, I'll go with her. Who'll join me?"

The team looked to one another, with most of them not really wanting to join Lioness. However, Joker decided to give in and state, "I'll join you."

"Okay." Pixie understood, "Now remember, they are tough. Don't go into a fight haphazardly. Think smart, and get those keys." Everyone nodded in understanding.

Kong led Mona, Panther and Skull closer to a spot to pounce the Persona. When its' back was turned, Kong made the move, leaping onto its' back, and pulling off the mask with a flurry. It keeled over as it transformed into an Eligor, bearing down onto the guy who ripped his mask off, joined by his fellow phantom thieves.

"Dammit, not this thing again!" Skull growled.

"This one's weak to electricity!" Mona told the team.

"Skull, I think we might just have the jolt to shock this guy's system!" Kong declared as he grinned in a sort of sinister manner.

As they readied themselves for a fight, the other three composed of Joker, Lioness and Pixie, snuck around the scene unnoticed, and went downstairs to where the other knight was at. As they went down, they stopped and crouched into hiding as they saw the scene in the quarter-circle room; three gold-armored knights, pacing about.

"Three high-ranking knights!" Pixie noticed.

"They're going in different directions..." Joker added.

"Guess we have no choice. Gotta take each of them out." Lioness was about to stand up when Pixie stopped her by placing her hand on the latter's shoulder.

"You try and do that, and you'll wear yourself down too quickly! Besides, we have someone who has a 'Third Eye' for this situation." The two looked to Joker, who nodded, and concentrated himself. He could see the three targets about the area; two of them were showing a blue aura, while the third, the one about to leave the room, showed a red one.

"Found it." Joker told the two, and the two followed his gaze.

"Let's make our move." Lioness declared, jumping over the railing, down to the floor below, and pursued the knight.

"Wait for us!" Pixie whispered as she and Joker followed her lead.

As soon as they were clear of the other two knight's earshot, Lioness made her move. She tapped the shoulder of the knight, getting its' attention. Just as it turned to her, She grabbed the mask by the eyes, and ripped it off of its' face, causing it to forcefully become an Eligor. "You're gonna give us that key now..." Lioness growled, tossing the mask to the side as Pixie and Joker summoned Cordelia and Incubus, respectively.

* * *

Up above, the Eligor charged at Mona and Panther, its' weapon raised. Mona leapt to one side as Panther sidestepped, using her whip and cracking at the legs of the horse, causing it to whinny and fall to the ground in a skid.

"Now, you guys!" Panther shouted to Skull and Kong, both of which had Captain Kidd and Sasuke out above them.

"Let's put a shock to its' system!" Kong declared as the two Personas unleashed two electric attacks that converged together, blasting the Eligor heavily, causing smoke to rise. It was in too much pain to move for the moment.

"This'll end it!" Mona shouted as he and the others gathered together, and went into an All-Out Attack. They peppered away at the Shadow, before coming out of it, with Skull performing a C-shaped handstand, before flipping out of it, grinning as he gave a gangster sign with his hand, declaring, "That's all she wrote!"

The Shadow vanished before their eyes in a blast of black ooze, leaving behind the yellow eye key in its' wake. Kong picked it up as he smirked at the others. "Gotta say, that was freakin' awesome!"

"Now we just gotta wait for the others to arrive." Mona stated, "Let's head back up to the Kamoshida statue, and wait for them there!" They nodded in agreement, and raced back up to where they left before.

* * *

Down below, the other Eligor nearly stomped on Joker, had he not moved out of the way. Alanna appeared, slashing at it with her blade, only to be parried by the lance of Shadow.

"You're wide open!" Lioness declared, one hand masking her face as she leapt up high, and dove down in a thrust with her rapier, striking the gut of the Eligor knight, making it and the horse skid backwards.

"Cordelia, shine your light!" Pixie shouted, unleashing her Persona, who summoned light arrows to strike down the Eligor. It tried to get back up, but it was pretty worn for wear.

"Arsene!" Joker shouted, switching Incubus with his first Persona, who unleashed a dark wave at the Eligor, causing it to falter once more. It was blinded by the darkness for a moment, then when it looked up, it saw the barrel of Lioness's sniper rifle, the cold expression on her face, and the finger pulling the trigger. After that, it vanished from existence, leaving behind the other key, which Lioness picked up.

"Excellent teamwork, you two." Pixie told the two as they gathered together.

"We should head back to the others." Joker suggested.

"If they're smart, they'll head back to the blocked hallway again." Lioness huffed, "Otherwise, I'll freeze them in place with Alanna, and feed them to the Shadows."

"A bit of a cruel fate, if you ask me." Pixie muttered as she and Joker looked to her with concern and fear.

"It was just a joke." Lioness scoffed, tossing the eye to Joker as she passed him, "Honestly, you guys are so gullible, it's almost sad." She wandered away from the two, who watched her leave.

"Is that her style of jokes?" Joker asked.

"Hopefully, it's not the case." Pixie answered, "Then again, I've heard crueler." With that, they followed Lioness back to where the others were.

When the trio made it back they found the other four, with Kong holding the key they obtained. He and Joker placed in the keys, and the latter pulled the mouth of the statue down. The eyes worked, as the swaying blades suddenly slowed to a halt on either side, opening the grated path for them.

"All right! We can get across!" Skull declared.

"Of course, you idiot! No need to state the obvious." Lioness retorted, getting a glare from the punk.

"Save the arguments for later, and lets go!" Kong declared, and they raced along the path forward.

They had made it to an arched-shape room, with what looked like platforms on the wall in the far back, which seem to form a path that led to the next floor. "Well, I see WHERE we need to go, but no way of getting there." Panther stated.

"Meaning there must be another switch that gets us up there, or something." Lioness assumed, looking about, "But I don't see one."

"Hold on." Joker told the others, looking at the platforms, "Didn't we encounter steps that suddenly appeared for us before, that led to platforms like those?" They looked to the platforms and noticed he was right. They had seen them before, but for some reason, it wasn't happening for them.

"Hmph. You are gravely mistaken if you think stairs will appear for you whenever you'd like." a voice from behind stated, and they all turned to see a soldier, coming out of the shadows to confront them.

"What'd you suggest he's the one holding back the steps for us?" Kong asked, getting into a fighter's stance.

Lioness raised her sniper rifle at him abruptly, growling in a threatening manner, "If you don't want a painful death, I'd suggest you make these stairs appear."

The knight laughed at this as it stated, "Do you think you have the right to order me around?! Those stairs lead to his majesty's throne room! This majestic tower penetrating the sky represents the admirable King Kamoshida's most sacred place. It is nowhere for children like yourselves! Prepare for your punishment!"

"What kind of selfish reasoning is that?!" Panther demanded, "The only one who needs to be punished is..." But before she could finish her sentence, the knight took on its' Shadow form, which looked like some sort of sludgy mass with a mouth. This scared Panther, and for some reason, it even scared Pixie.

"Kyah! A Mara!" Pixie exclaimed, "Slime monsters like this are the worst!"

"Seriously, mom?!" Kong retorted angrily, "Slimes are practically the first monsters you'd find in every JRPG out there!"

"Yeah, well this is not a game, is it?" Panther asked, shuddering at the sight of the monster, "And frankly, I don't wanna get near it!"

A shot was heard from close to them. Lioness fired her sniper rifle, hitting the monster right on the nose...if it had one. "You two stay back, if it freaks you out." Lioness told them, "I can take this, no problem." She fired her sniper rifle again before charging at the Mara fearlessly, switching out her firearm for her rapier.

"She's getting a little too trigger-happy, isn't she?" Kong asked as he, Skull and Joker charged in after her.

The Mara saw her as she made a dashing thrust at it. It leapt up to avoid the attack, and Lioness looked up to see it come down at her in an Assault Dive. "Look out!" Skull shouted, taking a leaping dive at her from behind, and pulling her away from the attack. They skidded on their sides as the Mara landed heavily, causing the ground to shake from its' attack.

"Get...your hands off me!" Lioness snapped, pushing Skull away as they got to their feet.

"Your welcome, by the way!" Skull growled, rising up with her.

"Sasuke!" Kong shouted, summoning his Persona, and unleashing a bolt of lighting at it.

"Silky!" Joker shouted, summoning his Persona, who unleashed icicle shards down at the enemy. Both attacks struck it, but neither one seemed to do much damage.

"Mara should be weak to ice, so why isn't it working?" Pixie asked.

"It must be built to be resistant to elemental attacks." Mona assumed.

"Then I guess we'll have to hit it with some melee attacks!" Kong declared, summoning his quarterstaff and charging at the sludge Shadow.

"You have no chance against me!" it roared, turning and slamming into Kong with its' head, causing him to be sent backwards.

"You're wide open!" Skull shouted as he and Lioness struck the monster with their mace and rapier respectively. It turned to face them, only to get sliced in the back by Joker. It looked around at all of them, before seeing Mona helping up Kong, while Panther and Pixie stood away from the scene. The spot where its' eye should be glinted, before making a bound into the air to avoid the three's next attack. Lioness saw where it was going, and acted on instincts.

"If you do not wish to fight, then you die!" The Shadow roared, diving down at the two ladies, who panicked at the sight of it.

Lioness summoned Alanna as it came into action, and blocked with its' blade. The pressure the Assault Dive from the enemy strained on the Shadow's arms, which also affected its' wielder's arms. She tried to push it back, and after a struggle, she managed to do so. The Mara was sent flying from the girls, causing it to crash into the wall on the opposite side, before falling to the ground with a heavy thud. Lioness shook her arms so as to get rid of the tension that was there.

"Nice parry, Lioness!" Kong called out, "We'll take it from here!" He and Mona dashed past her as they and the other two boys came at the recovering Shadow. They each summoned their Personas, with Joker summoning one of his newer Persona; a Berith. Mona's Zorro unleashed a blast of wind that made the Shadow flinch, giving Skull's Captain Kidd to lunge with its' hooked hand, making it reel back.

"Kong, let's go!" Joker shouted, readying his dagger.

"I'm on your nine!" Kong answered, splitting his staff to reveal the hidden blades within. They leapt forward, with Sasuke and Berith behind them, brandishing their blades. They came to either side, and cleaved the Shadow down the middle, making it howl from the combined attack, before vanishing from existence.

"Alight, you beat it!" Panther cheered.

"Thank goodness. No more of that creepy thing." Pixie sighed in relief, placing a hand on her chest.

"I guess it worked out." Lioness stated, walking up to them while sheathing her rapier, "Only next time, don't stick out like sore thumbs! Your freakin' phantom thieves, so if you can't fight, then hide, for God's sake!"

"Er..." Panther tried to think of a comeback, but Pixie placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping her. She did have a point, after all. With all these rows of bench chairs about, it would've been a good idea to run away from the scene instead of being easy targets like they were.

As the boys cheered at their victory, Pixie followed up with, "Thanks for protecting us, Lioness."

"Just a small bit of what I owe you, that's all." She answered, walking past her, and seeing the steps forming from the bottom all the way to the closest platform, "Now hurry up. We're almost at the Treasure."

As they all followed her to the next level, Pixie heard the first sentence of what she said, and knew what she meant. ' _A small bit of what she owes me, huh?'_ She wondered, ' _Does she still feel guilty for not saving Daichi?'_

She knew, as well as Lioness knew, that it was the right answer. Deep down, she didn't feel like 'sorry' was enough. She had to owe her until her heart was satisfied.

* * *

At long last, after running up some stairs, they found themselves at the door to the throne room. They looked up at the big double doors in front of them.

"Alright, we made it!" Skull declared, rolling his shoulder, "The Treasure's on the other side, right? Let's bust on in!"

He was about to open the door when Lioness and Pixie shouted, "Wait!"

"Awwrrrg... what now?!"

"If you wanna die an early death, then be my guest." Lioness growled, "Open that door, but not while I'm here!"

"Let's head to the floor above it through there." Pixie suggested, pointing at an opening high above one of the feminine statues. The two ladies went on ahead, with Kong right behind them, followed by Mona, Joker, Panther, and finally, a disgruntled Skull.

They made it through the opening, finding themselves on the second-floor, where the crept over and looked over the railing to see the entirety of the throne room. There were a good half-dozen guards on either side of the red carpeting that led to the throne itself, where Kamoshida's Shadow sat.

"See what I mean?" Lioness told Skull, "If we ended up barging in there, we'll end up with more than we can bargain with, let alone Kamoshida's Shadow."

"Yeah...guess I'll try to listen more..." he admitted.

"Shh! He's saying something!" Panther hushed them, hearing what the palace ruler had to say.

"How have you not captured the intruders yet?!" He demanded at the soldiers.

"My apologies, my liege!" One of the soldiers answered in fright.

"I bet he'd never imagine we're in the same room as him." Mona scoffed, "Come on, let's get moving..." They crept low and stealthily as they made their way to the back, discovering another door that led to the back room of the throne room. They opened the door, slowly and quietly, and rushed through. After another set of doors, they found themselves in, what appears to be, the treasure vault of Kamoshida.

"Whoa, what is this place?!" Skull gasped at the sight of the mountain of gold on the ground, "That Treasure thing's gotta be in here!"

"More precisely, it's right there." Pixie answered, pointing to the cloud of light in the air above the treasure.

"Yeah. That's how it looked when we saw Oda's Treasure the first time!" Kong recalled.

"It was the same with so many other people's Palaces, too." Lioness added.

"We finally found it! The Treasure!" Mona cheered, hopping onto an oversized gold trophy.

"But... I thought it would look like that shogi board you had in your home." Joker recalled, "Didn't you say that was a Treasure, too?"

"That's the real-life form of the Treasure." Pixie explained, "Before that, it took the form of a gold statue of Oda in the Metaverse. And before that, it had this form, but only because it hadn't materialized just yet."

"Oy, can you let me do the explaining to the newbies, please?" Mona requested longingly, kinda feeling irked that she was stealing the spotlight.

"Okay, so how do we 'materialize' this Treasure?" Skull asked.

"Desires have no physical form by nature." Mona started, hastily trying to speak before either Lioness or Pixie started, "Hence, we'll first need to make the real person aware that their desires are in fact a Treasure. Once they're conscious that their desires might be stolen, the Treasure will finally show itself."

"But how do we do that?" Panther asked.

"By making a calling card." Kong answered with a smirk, causing a dead-panned look on Mona, "We'll send it to them that tells them, 'We're here to steal your heart and make you confess your crimes from your mouth.' If we convince them that way, the Treasure will appear. Right, Pixie?" His mom smiled and nodded.

"So we're gonna send a calling card?" Skull asked eagerly, "That's totally what a phantom thief would do!"

"But we can't just send the card willy-nilly." Lioness stepped in, "For one, it should at least be in a place where Kamoshida would see it. If it's in a place where people also see it, too, the better. Two, the calling card is a one-time use, only. If we send it, and are not prepared to face whatever happens in the Palace, then that's it. Game over."

"Right. We have to be fully prepared for anything when we steal the Treasure." Mona finished up, "For now, we secured an infiltration route. All that's left now is to pump out a calling card in reality, then come back to take the Treasure!" The team nodded in understanding, knowing what needed to be done.

Moments later, using the power of the Metaverse, they arrived back at the drawbridge of the Palace.

"So when can we do this?" Skull asked.

"I'll try to make a day available for me to get off and help you out." Pixie told the group, "That's when we'll send the calling card."

"But what about you, Lioness?" Kong asked, looking at the girl as she started to leave them.

"I'll know when the calling card is in place." She answered nonchalantly as she pulled out her smartphone, "I mean, you'll place it somewhere in school, right? On the board, maybe? That could draw Kamoshida in, as well as many other students. In the meantime, I'll see you later." She activated her Metaverse app, and vanished from the group through a distortion.

"She is seriously a soloist..." Kong muttered, "Reminds me of Kirito a lot..."

"But that school board idea isn't a bad thing." Skull stated, "Don't worry. I'll make the calling card!"

"But how will she even see the board?" Panther asked, "Does this mean... she goes to our school?"

"Well, I think that would be obvious." Kong answered, "If Kamoshida knows her and sees her as an enemy, then most likely she goes to our school."

"But who is she?!" Skull demanded, "I mean, she looks kinda familiar, but I can't pinpoint where I saw her before..."

"It doesn't matter." Joker told them, "We know what needs to be done, and she is our ally in stopping Kamoshida. Once we have a set date, we're sending out that calling card." The team nodded in agreement. Joker pulled out his smartphone, and used the app to bring themselves back into reality once more.

* * *

That night, Guren collapsed on her bed, incredibly exhausted from the day in the Metaverse. "God, that was exhausting..." she moaned, her right arm covering her eyes.

She removed her arm and looked up at the ceiling, thinking. So much happened today. She ended up working together with Amamiya, Kurosawa and the others, she secured an infiltration route to Kamoshida's Treasure, while trying to keep everyone from not dying, and, from her point of view, more importantly, she learned that Daichi's friend, who she recalled hearing about her from both his final words towards her and the letter, was really Mia Kurosawa, a.k.a Pixie.

' _She is so not like other adults I know. Well, the fact that she is a Persona-user makes that a given...'_ she pondered to herself, ' _But still, who would've thought I would meet her like this, just like Daichi predicted... I...I still don't know if I deserve the forgiveness she gave me. Well, at the very least, I'll protect her until we snatch Kamoshida's Treasure. After that, I'll leave her alone. She'll probably get sick of seeing the person responsible for her friend's death.'_

She closed her eyes, formulating things in her mind on what to do for every situation. She always did this after she secures an infiltration route. However, this was different, as she now had more than herself to add into her plans. ' _What an effin' bother, this lot had to be...'_ she told herself.

* * *

 **Next Time:**

 **Lust Lost**


	12. Lust Lost

**Before the story begins, let me list out the characters levels, Persona, and moves, so you all know.**

* * *

 **Ryuji** : Captain Kidd lv. 13

-Zio, Lunge, Tarukaja (raise attack), Headbutt

 **Morgana** : Zorro lv. 13

-Garu, Dia, Patra, Media, Lucky Punch

 **Ann** : Carmen lv. 13

-Agi, Dia, Dormina, Tarunda (lower attack), Maragi

 **Haneru** : Sasuke lv. 18

Zio, Cleave, Marin Karin, Mazio, Swift Strike, Sukukaja (raise agility), Sharp Student

 **Mia** : Cordelia lv. 18

-Garu, Kouha, Dia, Media, Hama, Garula, Patra

 **Guren** : Alanna lv. 25

-Bufala, Mabufu, Rakunda (lowers defense), Freeze Boost, Attack Master, Vicious Strike, Giant Slice, Tempest Slash.

 **Ren** lv. 14

-Genbu: Bufu, Rakunda (lowers defense), Patra, Mabufu, Resist Forget, Defense Master, Eiha

-Berith: Cleave, Rakukaja (increase defense), Double Fang, Dodge Fire, Sledgehammer

-Obariyon: Snap, Sukunda (lower agility), Lucky Punch, Resist Fear, Dekaja, Garu, Apt Pupil

-Saki Mitama: Bufu, Energy Drop, Wind Wall, Growth 1, Rakukaja (increase Defense), Resist Dizzy, Agi

-Andras: Bufu, Rakunda (lower defense), Tarukaja (raise attack), Apt Pupil, Mabufu

* * *

 **April 21**

"Pose!" Katashi (Break) shouted, as he and Lyra (Fresh) watched Haneru and Beat (Noboru) struck their final pose after doing their dance. When the music ended, Haneru relaxed his body, panting from exhaustion.

It was a few days after they had secured an infiltration route to Kamoshida's Treasure. They all agreed to go when Mia was able to get off work early one of the school days. For the meantime, they had to act normal, going to school, while preparing themselves for the heist to come. Ryuji already stated he would do the calling card for the group, and had it ready to be posted.

As for Lioness, they still didn't figure out who she really was, yet, but they were sure that she went to their school. Ann was curious, and so was Haneru and Mona. Ren was indifferent, but Ryuji was straight-up ignorant on Lioness.

Haneru decided that he should get himself a bit more fit before the big fight to come, so he decided to spend his after-school hours with Dance Life. Today was only his second day working with them.

"Your breathing is still all wrong." Katashi stated, walking up to the exhausted Haneru, "You are not doing it in the right places."

"Sorry..." Haneru panted, straightening himself up, "I get so enveloped in the music, it's like I forget to breath at times."

"It's good that you have a heart for enjoying music, but don't forget that every great dancer has to know when and where to breath properly in their dance." Noboru pointed out.

"Look at it this way; the dance you just did was pretty simple, and you wouldn't be this exhausted if you just breathed properly when you were dancing." Lyra told him, "Let's go through some exercises, to teach you the proper way of breathing in motion."

"Breathing in motion, huh?" Haneru asked, looking at his chest, "Yeah... I really need to learn how to do that. If I can't, then I'll tire easily in a battle, too..."

"Battle?" Noboru asked, curiously.

Haneru realized his mind and mouth almost started to slip towards his secondary life as a phantom thief, and stated, "I mean a dance battle! I still remember how exhausted I was when I faced Break in our first encounter."

"Don't worry about the past." Katashi told him, curling his hand into a fist pump, "Let's become great for the future! That's the passion of Dance Life, after all!" Noboru chuckled at his slightly over-dramatic declaration, while Lyra shook her head at this.

"Right! Let's get started!" Haneru replied, prepared to learn thoroughly.

* * *

About a couple hours later, Haneru was on the train, heading back home. He was exhausted from the training he went through, but satisfied. It was a pretty good lesson to learn, and they made sure that he could do these breathing lessons at home, even when he wasn't dancing.

"Who would've thought that there was more to dance than from what I knew and learned from the anime." He sighed, "Guess the characters have an abundance of stamina for a good reason."

Just then, he felt his smartphone vibrate on him. He pulled it out, and saw that it was a group text from his mom, with the message he was waiting for. "I am off early tomorrow. Send it then."

"I've been waitin' for you to say that!" Ryuji texted afterwards.

"Heh. Waited too long." Ann followed, "We're going to pull this off, no matter what!"

"Totally fired up for this!" Haneru texted, "Let's do this thing!"

"Then it's unanimous." Ren finished, "Everyone, get ready for infiltrating tomorrow."

"I have the calling card ready to go!" Ryuji texted.

"This is important. Are you sure you can handle the pressure?" Ann texted.

"Trust me. I wanna get him good! Ren, back me up on this!"

"Alright." Was all Ren texted.

"If you can write a good one, then I'm okay with it." Mia followed, "Just don't make it too obvious it is you."

"Yeah, I got this!" Ryuji declared.

"Then let's give him the warning, and dethrone the king!" Haneru declared in his text.

"Right!" They all answered in their individual ways, and they hung up.

Haneru looked ahead blankly, then he formed a somewhat malicious smirk as he mentally declared, ' _Time to change Kamoshida's heart!'_

Ren, who was cleaning dishes at the café with Sojiro at the time, hung up his phone, as Morgana stated, "I worry about Ryuji. I just hope he isn't gonna ruin it for all of us when he sends out that calling card."

"Well... Here's hoping..." he answered, putting the last plate on the drying rack, then going to dry his hands.

"What're you talking about?" Sojiro asked him.

"Oh... Just hoping I did a good job on the dishes." Ren quickly gave an excuse.

"Looks good to me." he answered, looking at the dishes, "Anyways, I'll be headin' home. You coming for dinner, Guren?"

Guren, who was finishing her homework in one of the booths, rose up as she stated, "Yeah, sure. I could use some good home-cooked meal."

As Sojiro hung things up before heading home, Guren looked to Ren as he went upstairs, with Morgana bounding next to him. In truth, she had overheard everything, and it's not like they knew she could understand the cat. ' _Tomorrow, it is, huh?'_ She told herself, ' _Guess I'm gonna have to get myself all prepared for what's to come. Don't worry, Makoto. I promise you that I will change my fate by changing Kamoshida's heart!'_

* * *

 **April 22**

It was early in the morning, and people were already making their way through the school gate, unaware of what had been posted inside. Makoto had just arrived herself when she heard her BFF call out, "Hey, Makoto!" She turned and saw her race towards her.

"Morning, Guren. What's the big rush?" Makoto asked.

"Oh, nothing." Guren answered, "Although, I did have an odd feeling things were gonna change today."

"Really?" Makoto asked, surprised, "In the past year, when you get a good feeling like this, something almost always does. Does it have to do with what you are being blamed for?"

"Maybe~" Guren answered. The truth of the matter is that she faked these 'good feelings' before she tackled a Palace or tried to change someone's heart. This was a rouse to all those close to her, like her uncle, cousin, and the Niijima sisters, so as to not draw any bad suspicions about her really being the cause of the change in those who target her.

"Hey, Makoto, Guren!" Greeted another familiar voice. Haneru had just caught up with them, trying to hold back his excitement of tackling the Palace today.

"Hello, otaku boy." Guren greeted, getting an elbow to the arm by her BFF.

"You seem pretty happy today, Haneru." Makoto noticed.

"Got something pretty awesome to do after school." He answered.

"Oh, yeah? What is it?"

"It's. A. Se-cret." Haneru walked past the girls and through the school gate, "Let's go! I want this school day to end already!"

Makoto and Guren looked to one another. While one was oblivious to Haneru's attitude, the other was finding the fact that he was being childish, what with the risks and dangers of stealing the Treasure from a Palace. To her, this was a serious business, and one that she couldn't afford to lose her life over. The two girls followed him into the school.

Once inside, they found several students surrounding the school board next to the food stand. In fact, it was drawing all of the students attention. Ann was also amongst the group, with Ren and Ryuji hanging back to watch the effects of the calling cards the latter placed on there.

"What is going on?" Makoto questioned, looking at the board, "Who placed these up?!"

"Looks like... a warning of some kind." Haneru noticed, squeezing through the crowd to grab one of the posted calling cards. He brought it back to the girls and read it out loud to them.

"Sir Suguru Kamoshida, the utter bastard of lust. We know how shitty you are, and that you put your twisted desires on students that can't fight back. That's why we have decided to steal away those desires and make you confess your sins. This will be done tomorrow, so we hope you will be ready. From, the Phantom Thieves of Hearts."

After he was done reading it, the three looked at each other, with the same incredulous look on their faces. "Is that...suppose to be a calling card?" Guren asked, finding it a complete joke.

"Looks like it... I guess..." Haneru replied, in the same boat as Guren.

"This is ludicrous!" Makoto exclaimed, "Someone not only vandalized our school boards with these, but also threatened a teacher with them!"

"Well, they did threaten the right teacher." Guren pointed out.

"But still, this dumb handwriting... it's so crudely worded, I feel bad for the guy who wrote it."

"This is serious, you guys!" Makoto growled at the two, making them jump, "We need to find out who did this!"

On the other end of the spectrum, Ann was just coming back to Ryuji, Ren and the appearing Morgana. "What do you think of my masterpiece?" Ryuji asked in confidence, "I looked up a bunch of similar stuff online for reference."

"Meh..." Ann replied, "I know what you wanted to say, but sounded like an idiot trying to be an adult."

"Your logo is a little lacking, too." Morgana added.

"Okay, y'know what? Th-That ain't true!" Ryuji retorted, looking to Ren, "Back me up here!" Ren looked away from him, going by the old saying, 'if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all'. This made Ryuji feel worse about the insults.

Just then, Guren noticed Kamoshida power-walking towards the scene, and she whispered to the two, "Heads up. The guest star is here."

They looked to see the PE teacher approach the school board, and read silently what the calling cards said. His face went from startled to angered as he barked, "Who's responsible for this?!"

' _That shook his feathers.'_ Haneru mentally noticed as the teacher grabbed the nearest male student, demanding if he did this.

' _Despite how stupid the calling cards are, they are affecting him.'_ Guren pointed out.

"I think it's hittin' him pretty hard." Ryuji smirked.

As students were fleeing the scene, Kamoshida looked to Guren and confronted her. "You...you're the one who did this, didn't you?!"

"Oh, sure. Blame the Shujin Jailbird when you ever have the chance..." She scoffed.

"Guren Sakura is innocent of this!" Makoto pleaded, throwing her hand in front of the said character, "We're just as surprised by this as you are, Mr. Kamoshida!"

"Hmph! Being friends with the school's star pupil and Student Council President isn't gonna help you!" Kamoshida retorted, looking to the said student, "Unless you want me to report to the principal that you rebelled against one of your teachers." Makoto looked a bit shaken at this, and remained silent.

"You know, it's a common anime trope for villains to blame those who have a bad reputation like you paint Guren as." Haneru stated, frowning at the PE teacher, "Besides, she's does have much better grammar than this."

"You're defending her too?" Kamoshida questioned, looking down at Haneru, who didn't waver from his gaze, "You got a lot of nerve trying to go against me. Or is this some sort of roundabout way of saying YOU wrote these?"

"Please. I'm a simple otaku." Haneru shrugged off his words, "Why the hell would I pick a fight with a guy I clearly have no chance against?"

"Hey, back off from him!" Ryuji barked, getting the teacher and the trio of students's attention.

Kamoshida glared at him and the people around him as he asked, "Did you brats do this?!"

"What're you talking about?" Ren asked, feigning ignorance, but giving a threatening glare at him.

Kamoshida looked to Ann, seeing that she was part of their group now, then scoffed, "It's not a problem. You'll all be expelled soon enough anyway."

Suddenly, for those who have been to the Metaverse, they felt the air distort, then everything went black around them, except for the appearance of Kamoshida's Shadow, who looked at the lot of them. "Come! Steal it, if you can!" He taunted, accepting their challenge. The area suddenly reverted back to normal, and Kamoshida walked away, giving one final glare to Guren and Haneru before leaving them alone.

"Judging from Kamoshida's response... I'm sure we had an effect on his Palace!" Morgana stated as they walked away from the earshot.

"Does that mean the Treasure's appeared?" Ann asked, "We'll be able to get it today, right?"

"It's not just 'today'. It's ONLY today." The cat answered, "The impact of seeing a calling card doesn't last long, and it cannot be repeated. This will be our one chance to steal the Treasure."

"One day is more than enough for us." Ryuji answered with a grin.

With the other group, Guren turned to Haneru and stated, "You know, I didn't need your protection in this matter."

"Well, was I asking permission to confront him? No." He replied, "Besides, being unfairly accused for this and that bogus story about Suzui and the volleyball club is total garbage."

"But still, what were you two thinking?" Makoto asked them, "I get you would do that, Guren, but you, Haneru?!"

"Hey, you should've met my ex-landlord." Haneru replied, "Besides, I can't just bow down to a guy like that! You can't honestly think someone like that deserves all the respect he seems to have now?"

"...I know he's not a kind man...and I know he's done too many horrible things... but what can we do about it?" Makoto asked, "Ever since Suzui's attempted suicide, I've been working as hard as I could to get evidence on Kamoshida's involvement with that. I asked all the students in the school and all of the volleyball students about it, but no one wants to talk! They all just decide to turn the blame on Guren and let her take the fall."

"And let me guess; you never SERIOUSLY confronted Kamoshida or the other teachers with this, did you?" Guren asked her, knowing full well what the answer was.

"I did my best... but Kamoshida's reputation for 'putting this school on the map' is keeping them from saying anything. And Kamoshida almost got me into trouble when I confronted him, so I let him be..."

"I swear, Makoto..." Guren sighed, shaking her head, "You are my best friend, but if I had one critic about you that I would like to change, it's your 'teacher's pet' persona that you put up." Makoto looked pretty shameful at this.

"Well, I guess all our hope now is in the guy or guys who posted these up." Haneru stated, looking back at the calling cards.

"What are you talking about?" Makoto asked.

"Well, they said they'll make him confess his crimes and such. Might as well see if what they do is real."

"But it's just not possible!" Makoto barked, looking at the calling cards, "I mean, look how ridiculous the person sounds in the first place!"

"You're not wrong about that..." Guren answered, though she was looking at it grammatically.

"Steal your twisted desires? Phantom Thieves of Hearts? What kind of joke is this?!" The SCP pointed out ( **Author's Note: Student Council President for short, not to be confused with my fanfic BFF Coral and her work 'Second Chance as a Pirate', which is a great One Piece/Kingdom Hearts story** ), looking at the said words, "How in the world is someone gonna do all this to Kamoshida? I need to discuss this with the rest of the council members. I gotta go!" She walked away from the scene, leaving Haneru and Guren standing there.

"Guess I'll see you in class, then." Haneru stated, "Best not be late!" He raced off along a similar path with Makoto, leaving Guren alone.

She looked up at the calling cards littering the board, thinking. This was, more or less, how she did a calling card, but if it were her, she would've placed it all over the front doors and the gate of the school instead of this place. It would make a bigger scene than this. Plus, she would've been WAY better at writing her threat. Nevertheless, it worked. The heist was gonna happen, so she had to be prepared for the battle ahead.

* * *

After school, Lioness was the first to enter the Metaverse, looking up at the castle. Based on the air and on the spotlights shining above, they were on high alert. "Looks like it did the trick, after all." She muttered, seeing the scene, "Guess it's Treasure-stealing time!"

She then felt the disturbance in the air, and looked behind. Joker, Kong and everyone else were also arriving on the scene. Pixie was also with the group, too.

"Look who finally decided to show up..." Lioness spoke up as they joined her side.

"You got here early." Panther noticed.

"Saw the calling cards, and knew it was happening."

"Let's go, everyone!" Mona told the team, "Don't let your guard down!" With the team nodding in response, they dashed over the drawbridge, and into the castle.

Thanks to knowing all the shortcuts and such in the castle, getting back up to the top wasn't too hard. In fact, thanks to the ugly Kamoshida painting and the elevator behind that they discovered, getting to the top took much less time than they could've ever imagine. However, the guards were still on high alert, so even if they were hiding, they were highly aware of their surroundings, now.

Joker had spent some time clearly getting his Persona ready. Thanks to recruiting so many different Persona up till now, his arsenal was pretty strong after doing some fusions. He had to say goodbye to Arsene, but got Genbu, Berith, Succubus, Obariyon, Saki Mitama, Agathion, and Andras.

Genbu was a fusion of Arsene and Incubus, allowing it access to curse-element attacks.

Saki Mitama was a fusion of Bicorn and Jack-o-Lantern, giving it access to some of their powers, including Jack-o-Lantern's fire-element attack.

Obariyon was a fusion of another Jack-o-Lantern, along with Kelpie, giving it wind-element attacks to work with as well.

They finally made it to the throne room, and made their way into the Treasure room, where they saw the materialized Treasure at long last, floating in the air. "Aww yeeeaaah! The Treasure has appeared!" Mona cheered.

"Man, that is one huge crown!" Kong exclaimed, seeing that it was big enough for two or three people to fit their bodies inside of.

"And now, it's our for the taking." Lioness answered, "Let's steal it!"

"Ahh... this shine brings tears to my eyes..." Mona mewed.

"...It kinda pisses me off." Ann growled, "Why's it so pretty...? Isn't this Kamoshida's desires?"

"He really thinks of himself as a king, through and through." Pixie stated, frowning at the Treasure.

"T-Treasure..." Mona's exciting tone was causing the others to look at him, somewhat worried. He then bounded onto the Treasure, purring and meowing like an actual cat obsessing over their owner.

"You're way too excited." Joker called out. It fell on deaf ears as Mona continued to rub his head on the crown.

"Knock it off, you stupid cat!" Lioness roared, grabbing Mona by the collar and throwing him off of the crown, "God, do you realize WHERE we're at?! This is no time to go into an excitement frenzy!"

Mona got back up on his feet as he shook his head and said, in an embarrassed tone, "Oh, um, yeah... Forgive me for displaying such an insolent sight in front of the ladies..."

"You were completely out of character too." Panther noticed, "What was that about?"

"I would like to know that, too..." Pixie added.

"I couldn't stop it either... To think I'd be drawn to human desires this much..." Mona suddenly realized something, and asked, "Doesn't that mean that I'm human?!"

"How should we know?!" Skull answered.

"If you guys are done chatting, let's get this outta here!" Lioness barked at them, "Skull, Kong, help me out here!"

"Still barking orders..." Skull growled.

"Still, there doesn't seem to be any traps like there were in Oda's Palace." Kong pointed out, "Let's get this sucker outta here before we get caught!"

"Which will probably happen as we carry this out with us." Pixie stated, "It usually works that way."

"In that case, the rest of you guys be on guard!" Lioness ordered to Joker, Panther, Mona and Pixie, while she, Skull and Kong grabbed the rims of the crown, which stopped floating and fell on the hands of the trio. It was pretty heavy, but the three were able to handle it.

"To think it'd go so well... I've even found six Persona-users in the process..." Mona stated, looking to Joker, "My judgement was correct. I made the right choice in making a deal with you!" He chuckled at this statement.

"Let's go!" Joker told the group. They led the trio who were carrying the crown out of the Treasure room, and into the throne room.

They were about a third of of way across the throne room when they heard a voice a lot like Panther's shouting, "Go, go! Let's go! Ka-mo-shida!"

This was followed swiftly by the sight of Kamoshida's Shadow spiking a ball at the crown the trio were carrying, knocking it out of their hands. He flew over them in an aileron roll, landing in front of his throne, and raised a palm to the fallen crown. It glowed, then came to his hand, as the bikini-wearing Ann, the cognition he created, suddenly came to him, wrapping her arms around him.

"I won't let anyone take this!" Kamoshida's Shadow barked at the group, "This proves that I am the king of this castle. It is the core of this world!"

"This feels like deja vu..." Lioness muttered.

"I knew it! It's never easy getting the Treasure..." Pixie snapped.

"Oh, Sensei! Your face is so scary, but I'm shaking from excitement!" The cognition Ann stated, holding Kamoshida's arm tight, pressing her body against him.

"Don't be impatient." he replied with a lustful tone, "I'll throw some love your way later!"

"That rat bastard... That's how he sees me, isn't it?!" Panther barked.

"He thinks of you as a prize that should swoon over him, regardless of your feelings." Pixie stated, "Men like him piss me off!"

"Yo, pervert! You were waitin' to ambush us?!" Skull sassed.

"I just made it easier to find you." the Shadow answered, "I'll dispose of you myself. Right here, right now."

"If you think it'll be easy, then you're sorely mistaken!" Lioness retorted, readying her rapier, "Now prepare yourself! We're going to dish out more pain than what you ever did to the volleyball team!"

"What a selfish misunderstanding..." Kamoshida smirked.

"How is it a misunderstanding?!" Panther demanded, "You were doing things that you kept in secret from others!"

"The people around me were the ones who kept it secret." Kamoshida answered, "Adults who want to share in my accomplishments, students who have the drive to become winners. They willingly protect me so that we all may profit from it."

"Profit from what?! Your tyranny?! What would anyone gain from that?!" Kong demanded.

"There are too many imbeciles who don't understand that!" The false king barked, "Including naive brats like you and that girl who tried to kill herself!"

"Now you just hold on a minute...!" Pixie snapped, but Panther waved a hand in front of her, stopping her from retorting. When it came to Shiho, it was her business, not Pixie's.

"True, she's a total idiot... letting you manipulate her, trying to commit suicide... And I'm even more of a dumbass for not realizing that...!" Panther admitted, "But no matter what kind of fool someone might be, they don't need your permission to live their lives!"

Lioness looked back at her. She couldn't resist her face forming a smirk at the speech Panther made. It was people like her that she couldn't help but feel grateful that she wasn't the only one in the world rebelling against the stupid, manipulative adults of the world.

"Drop the attitude, you mediocre peasant!" Shadow Kamoshida spat, "There's no wrong in using my gifts for my gain! I'm a cut above all other humans!"

"Above?!" Pixie echoed in anger, "You got it completely backwards! Your no god, but a demon obsessed with your twisted desires!"

Kamoshida chuckled maliciously at this as his body gave of a wicked, red aura. "That's right. I'm not like you..." he stated, and his voice started to become distorted as well, "I am a demon who rules this world!"

His body, the fake Ann, and the crown suddenly became consumed in black and red energy, as he grew in size and form, becoming less and less human as he did so. All those who have not seen this before became paralyzed in shock, watching Kamoshida rise up high above them. "Wh-What the hell?!" Skull demanded.

"He's taking on his true, demonic form." Pixie answered, as she, Kong and Lioness readied themselves, "Get ready, everyone! He's coming at us full force!"

The Shadow Kamoshida took on his true form; a massive pink demon with four arms, with his lower arms carrying a golden knife and fork, while his upper arms carried a riding crop and a wine glass, with the fake Ann in it like a drinking straw. His long, thick purple tongue was hanging out of his mouth, while his Treasure was still on top of his head. He also had a trophy at his feet, with several female legs sticking out of it. On his sides were several dwarf-like beings, wearing full helms and chained to giant golden balls.

"I'M ALLOWED TO DO WHATEVER THE HELL I WANT!" It bellowed in a distorted voice.

"And I thought Oda's true form was ugly...!" Kong stated, "This guy's just plain disgusting!"

"And he isn't even the ugliest out there, either." Lioness added.

"Either way, we have to defeat him!" Joker told the team, "Let's finish this!" They all prepared to fight as the Shadow Kamoshida roared at the group, ready to destroy them all.

"YOU GODDAMN, NO-GOOD, SHITTY BRATS!" He barked at them, "HAVEN'T YOU BEEN TAUGHT NOT TO POINT AT PEOPLE?! HUH?!"

"The Treasure is right there!" Mona noticed the crown on his head, "Let's catch him off guard, and steal it!"

"I got him. Alanna!" Lioness summoned her knight to her side, "Weaken his defenses!" Alanna thrusted her blade forward, sending a wave of energy at the pink demon, and it suddenly glowed dark blue, weakening its' defenses.

"YOU LITTLE BITCH! YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!" He roared, cracking his riding crop, and the little minions by him suddenly summoned volleyballs that they spiked at the crowd of heroes, mainly Lioness. The barrage was something she couldn't avoid, so she had to try and block it. Unfortunately, several balls hit her body, and she toppled to the ground.

"Lioness!" Pixie cried out, as Kong raced forward, while everyone else was trying not to get hit by the barrage.

"Sasuke, speed me up!" Kong shouted, throwing off his mask as he summoned Sasuke, who thrust a palm forward, and his User glowed a green aura, speeding him up. The minions threw more volleyballs at him, but he evaded them as best as he could. He saw one of the volleyballs misfire, and used his quarterstaff as he skidded to a halt and whacked that ball like a baseball batter, hitting Kamoshida in one of his buggy eyes.

"And eye for an eye, buddy!" Kong declared as he leapt up and whacked at him with a combo of move before pulling out his hidden blades and doing a cross slash.

"AARGH! I'LL SKEWER YOU!" Kamoshida roared as he thrusted his knife at his attacker, who tried to protect himself by pressing blades to one side of it. He felt the pressure of the knife and the sparks flying from his blades sliding on it. Even though he managed to parry off that attack, he wasn't able to avoid the fork coming at him.

From everyone else's point of view, when the fork was thrust into Kong, they thought he was skewered by the attack. "HANERU!" Pixie exclaimed, fearing the worst. However, upon closer inspection, it turned out that he had barely avoided the worse possible scenario, and was stuck between two of the fork's teeth. He tried to pull himself out, but he was jammed in tight.

"YOU AREN'T EVEN WORTH EATING!" Kamoshida roared, "GET OFF MY FORK!" He shook the fork about hard, and dislodged Kong from it, sending him flying and crashing near the doors of the throne room.

"Mona, help him out!" Joker ordered.

"I got it!" Mona answered, summoning Zorro as they raced to Kong's side.

"Everyone, let's go!" Joker declared, "Genbu!" He summoned his Persona, a tortoise with a snake wrapped around its' belly, who unleashed a blast of darkness from the snake's mouth. Pixie and Panther summoned Cordelia and Carmen, respectively, and unleashed a blast of wind and fire together. The three attacks came at Kamoshida, blasting him hard with it. Before he could recover, Alanna and Captain Kidd appeared in front of him, the latter unleashing a slam to the gut with the head of its' ship, followed by a vicious slash from the knight.

"BASTARDS! HOW DARE YOU?!" the pink demon roared, thrusting his fork into the trophy in front of him, pulling out one of the pairs of legs, which turned out had no torso, and ate it. His body glowed with a healing energy as he chuckled, "HOW REFRESHING! COME AT ME, YOU PIECES OF SHIT! I AIN'T LETTIN' YOU SLEEP TONIGHT!"

"What?!" Panther gasped, as she and Joker avoided getting hit by Kamoshida's long tongue.

"He can regenerate himself, huh?" Kong asked as his body also glowed with healing energy from Mona's Zorro.

"Yeah, it must be because he ate those things inside there..." Mona assumed, "Looks like we're gonna have to break it!" He pulled out his slingshot, took aim at the trophy, and fired. The iron ball he shot flew past the others, striking the trophy. Though it didn't do as much damage, it did anger Kamoshida.

"HEY! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THIS IS WORTH, SO STOP TOUCHING IT!" He bellowed, stabbing his knife in front of his trophy, "DON'T DO IT ANYMORE, GOT IT! I'VE WARNED YOU!"

"Looks like he doesn't like his precious trophy from being damaged." Lioness stated.

"If someone doesn't tell us to do something, that makes us want to do it even more!" Mona stated with a smirk.

"In that case..." Skull started, but before he could start another attack on the trophy, he saw the giant fork coming down at him, and narrowly avoided it. Joker readied his pistol, aiming for the trophy, but saw the tongue fall down on him, and he got slammed away by it.

Panther endured the shockwave of the tongue attack as she stated, "We'll never get a chance to even hit it if he keeps us from doing an attack on it!"

"Then we'll just have to hit it when he doesn't expect it!" Lioness answered, pulling out her sniper rifle, "Give me a distraction, and I'll break that trophy where it stands!"

"Right then, let's do it!" Kong declared, and he and Mona dashed forward as Lioness raced past them, heading as far away from Kamoshida as she could.

She backed herself toward one of the statues, and readied her sniper rifle, taking aim carefully. She then heard another firearm being prepared nearby, and looked to her right. Pixie had just arrived on the scene, readying her sniper rifle, too. She looked back at the third-year, who understood at a glance what she was trying to mentally say; It would take both of their guns to destroy that trophy for good. Lioness nodded in understanding, and looked through the scope, waiting for an opportunity.

"TIME FOR A LITTLE VITALITY BOOST!" Kamoshida bellowed, and he took a sip of his large glass of wine, sucking on the fake Ann like a straw before she fell back in, feeling flirtatious at her teacher's 'affection' to her.

"Berith!" Joker shouted, calling out his Persona to the field, who created an aura of energy that showered Skull, making him glow blue and increase his defenses. This proved useful as he used his mace to endure many volleyballs hitting him.

Kong nimbly avoided the storm of volleyball, and used Sasuke to unleash several swift slashes with its' blade, striking Kamoshida a few times. He backed off as Panther and Mona used their fire and wind magic to knock Kamoshida's lower arms away from the trophy.

"It's all yours!" Kong shouted, signaling Lioness and Pixie to fire. They calmly took aim, and pulled their triggers. Pixie's gun fired first, but was aiming at a different part of the trophy compared to Lioness. Their bullets almost chased each other as they shot past everyone, narrowly hitting Mona had Panther not pulled him away at the last second, and made their marks. Pixie's bullet hit the stem of the trophy, right in the narrowest part, making it easy to break off the top half. The second bullet hit the cup of the trophy itself, forming cracks that grew bigger as it tipped over, crashing to the ground and shattering before Kamoshida's eyes.

"NO WAY!" Kamoshida cried out, feeling dismayed at the loss of his trophy, "THAT WAS FROM WHEN I WON THE NATIONALS!"

"All right!" Mona cheered as he and those in the front lines gathered together, glad to see that they put the demon in such a negative state.

"YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH DOING SUCH A THING? DO YOU REALIZE WHO I AM?!" Kamoshida demanded, "I AM KAMOSHIDA! DON'T YOU GET IT?!"

"So what? Do you think we care?" Joker asked.

Kamoshida looked bewildered at this for a moment, then retorted, "LIKE I KEEP SAYING! I AM KAMOSHIDA! I'M THE KING!"

"The only king you are is the King of Fools!" Kong retorted.

"You look down on everyone... but you're seriously lame right now." Skull stated.

"We came all this way to steal that! Will you just give it up and hand it over?" Panther demanded.

"Truthfully, I don't mind if we do it the painful way or not!" Lioness pointed out, a sinister grin forming over her face.

"SILENCE!" Kamoshida retorted, "I WON'T LET THE LIKES OF YOU HAVE THIS!"

"You still have the energy to say things like that?!" Mona demanded.

"Guess we'll have to go with the painful way, after all!" Pixie ended, "Guys in front! Go All-Out!"

"Right!" Joker, Skull, Panther, Mona and Kong all became blurs as they peppered away at Kamoshida's body, causing him to wail in agony from their combined attack. Though it didn't finish him off, it did do some serious damage to him.

"I'M THE KING...! IF I'M NOT, THEN WHO IS?!" Kamoshida demanded.

"Doesn't seem like we'll get anywhere with brute force!" Mona stated, looking at the crown, "In that case, time for plan B!"

"Great! So what's Plan B?" Skull demanded.

"I'd better give you guys a distraction so you can discuss this in private!" Kong stated as he dashed forward, with Lioness appearing next to him as they attempted a strong frontal assault. Kamoshida roared as he stabbed his fork and knife at them, which they barely avoided.

The others gathered together, including Pixie, as Mona pointed out, "Look over at that terrace! While everyone is drawing Kamoshida's attention, have someone go there! Let's steal the Treasure without him noticing!"

"In that case, leave it to me!" Skull told the others, "I'll make sure it falls, just keep him distracted by attackin' him!"

"Okay. Show us your monkey skills!" Mona replied.

"I ain't no monkey!"

"I'm not expecting much..." Panther started, causing Skull to look like he was punched in the face, "...But I am counting on you."

The last part caused the ruffian to gain the confidence he needed to go through with this plan. He grinned and nodded in response.

"Alanna!" "Sasuke!" Lioness and Kong unleashed an ice and electric combo that struck Kamoshida, who retaliated by striking them with his slobbery tongue, causing them to fly backwards in pain, toppling to the ground as the rest of the team got in front of them, with the exception of Skull.

"YOU WILL NOT DEFEAT ME!" Kamoshida bellowed, then noticed something, "WAIT A MINUTE! WHERE'S SAKAMOTO?!"

"He probably turned tail and ran!" Mona answered.

Unbeknownst to the pink demon, Skull was climbing a statue to the terrace, muttering, "I'll kill that cat later!"

"But there are six of us, and only one of you!" Panther stated, as Kong and Lioness rose up once again, "We'll be more than enough to take care of you!"

"YOU COCKY, LITTLE BRATS!" Kamoshida barked, flailing its' tongue and making it fall down at the phantom thieves, causing a dust cloud to form from the impact on the ground. Everyone evaded the attack as they all made their moves at Kamoshida.

"Saki Mitama!" "Alanna!" Joker and Lioness summoned their Personas to the field, and created a twin icicle storm at Kamoshida, freezing his main body in ice. Pixie and Mona came in next, unleashing spinning blades as they slashed right past the pink demon, shattering the ice and causing him excruciating pain.

"We are no where NEAR done with you!" Kong shouted as he held one end of Panther's whip, who launched herself forward at great speeds, thanks to Sasuke speeding her up. She tugged the whip hard, and pulled Kong off of his feet as he was carried into the air, heading for the wine glass Kamoshida carried, and smacked the stem of it so hard with his quarterstaff, it shattered, causing the wine and the fake Ann to fall, crashing to the ground, and making the fake vanish into darkness.

"NO!" Kamoshida exclaimed as he saw his precious princess and his wine gone.

"That felt REALLY good to do!" Panther spat, "I will never want to see myself like that ever again!"

"Now it's your turn." Joker pointed his pistol up at the angered demon's face, "You won't be a king for this school any more!"

"NOW LISTEN UP. THIS SCHOOL EXIST BECAUSE I'M AROUND." The Shadow growled, "YOU'RE THE ONLY ONES WHO DON'T RESPECT ME, YOU KNOW!"

"Yeah, and that's just because the school is filled with a bunch of cowards and morons who let you do whatever you want!" Lioness retorted, "They see a guy with a medal and a reputation, and don't even THINK of anything else! But don't worry, we'll make sure they see what kind of monster you really are!"

"GRR... HOW DARE YOU KEEP DEFYING ME... LOOKS LIKE I GOTTA BRING OUT THE BIG GUNS!" Kamoshida looked at his minions and barked, "SLAVES! BRING OVER YOU-KNOW-WHAT!"

The minion detached their chains from the golden ball, and raced around the team to get something they didn't see. "I don't like where this is going..." Pixie muttered, watching them leave.

"TIME FOR MY KILLSHOT FROM WHEN I WAS ACTIVE AND ROCKIN' IT!" Kamoshida roared, getting everyone attention, "KILLSHOT... AS IN I'LL MAKE THE KILL!" Skull, who had just barely reached the terrace, looked back down to see what he was planning.

Suddenly, a large volleyball suddenly flew high over the team's heads, and they noticed Kamoshida making a large bound into the air. "THE SPIKE THAT CEASED THE WORLD! GOLD MEDAL ATTACK!" Kamoshida smacked the ball with his wine-free hand, making the ball glow a gold aura as it rocketed down at the team. They all looked petrified as the ball came down in the middle of them, and exploded with the force of a large bomb, causing them all to cry out in agony.

"Guys!" Skull whispered in horror, seeing the damage the attack did.

When the smoke cleared, Panther, Pixie and Mona were barely conscious as they laid on the ground together. Joker was struggling to get to one knee again, but was low on stamina from the damage he took.

"WHAT DID YOU THINK?! DID I LEAVE YOU SPEECHLESS?!" Kamoshida snickered in laughter at his supposed humor. He then noticed one of the thieves rising to her feet, covered in bruises, but still able to go on. It was Lioness, glaring at the enemy before her. "YOU! YOU CAN STILL STAND TO REBEL AGAINST ME?!"

"I always get back up on my feet again, no matter what kind of pain I am dealt with..." She growled, "You won't make me bow down to you so easily!"

"YOU LITTLE..." Kamoshida growled, then noticed someone else joined her side, not even damaged in the slightest. Kong.

"You know, killshots only work if they hit their target." Kong stated, "Fortunately, I could tell that attack was coming. Maybe I should've told everyone else about it, though..." Kong looked back at the other four on the ground, regretting his selfish escape from the attack.

"YOU THINK YOU'RE SO CLEVER, HUH?!" Kamoshida demanded, "WELL, LET'S SEE HOW CLEVER YOU REALLY ARE AFTER I DO IT AGAIN!"

The two looked to one another, then back at their allies. "I don't think evading or enduring the attack will do us any good at this rate." Lioness growled, "Those guys'll be killed if that guy unleashes another one of those powerful attacks!"

' **Then I shall kill him before he has a chance to attack!'** The voice of Leo, her other Persona, echoed in Lioness's ears, as time seem to slow down around her, ' **You know there is no other choice. You cannot stop him with your other Persona. I shall rip that demon to shreds, and tear off his arms! He will pay for everything he had done to you and the school! It is what you desire to do, isn't it?'**

Lioness's eyes quivered at these words, as she tried to keep her cool. Leo, while her Persona, was also incredibly hostile and violent. She had trouble keeping him in line at times. Not only that, but he had a desire to kill. A desire that she didn't truly want, but a part of her did sometimes think about going through with it. The other part of her, the one Daichi was strongly part of, knew that wasn't right. However, she could not block the attack by herself, nor repel it. She needed to protect the others, so was Leo's suggestion really the only way?

Kong, meanwhile, was also acknowledging Lioness's words, and knew that he could not evade a second time. Even if he did, he could not bring everyone else out of the way with him. What could he do? ' _I need to think outside of reality. Time to dive into my fantasy for an answer!'_

He closed his eyes, thinking through the cycle of anime and video games he had watched and played. He thought to many times when a character had to deal with a powerful attack. How did they counter it when their strength alone wasn't enough. Suddenly, he recalled a scene from one of his favorite anime. The main protagonist was struggling to block an attack from a scythe-handed skeleton/scorpion-hybrid. However, thanks to his girlfriend, he was able to knock the creature back. "If we block it together, we have a chance!" She told the protagonist, helping him rise to his feet, "Come on, we can do this!"

Kong came back to reality, and looked to Lioness as he declared, "I got a creative idea! But we're gonna have to time it exactly right, or it won't work!"

Lioness came out of her struggle against Leo's words, and asked, "What are you talking about?"

"If we can't block or evade, then we can only repel. I'll use Sasuke to block the attack for a second, then you and Alanna come in from behind with a thrust, and send that attack back!"

"That's nuts!" Lioness exclaimed, "An attack like cannot be repelled, let alone you being able to blocking it!"

"That's why I am counting on you and your strength to repel it as soon as I slow it down." The monkey-masked boy answered, "You're the strongest one here, so I know you can do it! Plus, think how bummed Kamoshida would be if we returned the attack that won him that gold medal in the first place?"

Lioness looked startled. He did have a point in that sense that it would kill Kamoshida's mood if his best attack was stopped. However, the means of how to do it, which she knew came from Haneru's otaku mindset, was risky. If she went through with Leo's choice, she could stop casualties, but at the high risk of killing Kamoshida. If Kong's plan worked, which was still pretty low, they wouldn't kill Kamoshida, and they could steal his Treasure with the efforts of Skull, who was on the terrace, looking down at the scene.

"YOU'RE FINISHED, YOU DELINQUENTS!" Kamoshida roared, leaping up as another large volleyball came over the heroes, readied to be spiked down at them.

"Sasuke, go!" Kong shouted, summoning his Persona as he drew out his hidden blades. He crossed his blades in front of his face, which Sasuke mimicked, as Kamoshida unleashed another Gold Medal Attack. The glowing volleyball came down on Sasuke's blades, grinding against it like a whetstone. Kong struggled to hold on as well, barely able to endure the attack, but it wouldn't last long at all. Lioness's weapon hand shook, but then she gripped her rapier tight. Right now, she really shouldn't think on how reckless it was. She had to act, so everyone could survive.

"Alanna!" she covered her masked face as she summoned her knight Persona, who flew up at high speeds towards Sasuke, and thrusted her blade right over his head, striking the volleyball. Whether it was through Lioness's determination, the fact that Kong slowed down the volleyball's spin, or maybe it was all of it, but after a few seconds of pressing the blade against the attack, Kamoshida's volleyball was sent flying backwards, soaring into the air above, where it exploded into the ceiling, and caused Kamoshida to look stunned at his best attack failing. Down below, Kong was on his knees, while Lioness's blade was above him and his crossed blades, both of their faces filled with amazement at the success of the plan.

"MY... MY SPIKE WAS RETURNED?!" Kamoshida gasped, enduring the debris from the ceiling from his own attack.

"It...worked!" Lioness gasped as Kong went around her blade, getting back onto his feet, grinning with joy.

She suddenly felt her injuries fade as an aura of healing energy covered her and Kong. Both Mona and Pixie had just used their healing powers on all six of them, as they, Panther and Joker got to their feet. "You guys did it!" Panther cheered, "Way to go, you two!"

"Agreed. The two of you pulled off a successful counter." Joker stated, grinning at them, "Nice tactic, Kong. I gotta remember that one."

"Just as I planned it." the otaku answered, making a fist pump after he placed his hidden blades into his quarterstaff. Lioness sighed in relief, but looked to Kong, once again finding it nuts that, just like with the archangel they fought before, he managed to pull off another creative plan, and make it work.

"Now it's our turn to pull our weight for the team." Mona told them as he, Pixie, Panther and Joker got in front of them, "Everyone, let's go!" Mona and Pixie summoned their Persona, unleashing a twin wind spell that blasted Kamoshida hard. This was followed by Panther and Joker, unleashing fire spells from Carmen and Saki Mitama, causing more damage, and leaving Kamoshida vulnerable for a certain person on the terrace.

"You're wide open!" Skull declared, taking a leap off of the banister of the terrace and knocking the large crown off of Kamoshida's head, where it toppled and rolled on the ground, away from the demon himself, who was flabbergasted. Skull landed on the ground, grinning at his accomplishment.

"NOOO!" Kamoshida whined, seeing the crown shrink to the the smaller size it was before, "MY... THE SYMBOL OF MY KINGSHIP!"

"Good, Kamoshida's all shaken up!" Mona stated.

"We can do this!" Panther stated as she raised her firearm to Kamoshida.

"Everyone! Give it all that you got!" Pixie shouted, "Cordelia!" Her Persona unleashed a blast of light arrows at Kamoshida.

"Sasuke!" "Captain Kidd!" Kong and Skull unleashed a twin electric storm together.

"Carmen!" Panther summoned a blast of fire with her Persona.

"Zorro, show your might!" Mona got his Persona to blast a powerful windstorm.

"Alanna!" Lioness's Persona whipped out an icicle storm, sending it flying.

All of the attacks came at Kamoshida, who screeched in agony from all the attacks peppering away at him. He whimpered and cried at the loss of his crown, the failure of his best attack, and how much damage he took.

One of his eyes looked up, and saw Joker had leapt into the air, grinning mischievously as he declared, "Obariyon!" His child-imp looking Persona appeared before him, grinning mischievously as he raised a hand, and snapped its' finger. What came after was a shotgun blast of explosions that hit its' body. "DAAAMN YOOOUUU!" He cried as he fell face-forward, and his oversized body faded into darkness, reverting to his human-like form.

"We did it!" Kong cheered as everyone smiled at their victory. Even Lioness smiled at the win they achieved together. She wouldn't say this out loud, but the fact that they worked together to best Kamoshida felt really good to her. She rather enjoyed it.

Skull was about to reach for the crown that was close to him, but was suddenly stopped as Kamoshida awoke and made a grab for the crown, attempting to run away with it. "Wait!" Skull shouted, as everyone chased after him as he made himself to the balcony outside, with nowhere else to go. Behind him, everyone surrounded any chance of him escaping from the heroes. He was surrounded.

"Right now, you're seeing the same view that Shiho saw." Panther growled, "You're cornered. There's nowhere else to run. And your facing the same view, scared... except she had no choice but to jump..."

"It's always been like this!" Kamoshida defended, turning to them desperately, "They forced their expectations onto me... I was desperate, too! What's wrong with demanding a reward?!"

"That's no excuse for what you did!" Skull barked.

"You caused too much harm to too many students. Don't you dare justify your cause!" Pixie growled.

' **Now's your chance! Seize the moment, and kill that man right before you!'** Leo's voice echoed in Lioness's ears, ' **He planned to blame you for everything he did. Are you gonna let a criminal get away with-.'**

' _Shut up!'_ She mentally barked, ' _I will not kill another person. Besides... I think someone else wants to make an attempt...'_

She was referring to Panther, who summoned Carmen to her side, who held two fireballs in her hands. "So will you jump? Or do you plan to die right here?" She asked the frightened king.

"Do you want to finish him off? It's your call." Mona told her.

"No, please wait!" Kamoshida cried, "I beg you... Just forgive me!"

"Shut up. I bet everyone told you the same!" Panther barked back, "But you... you took everything from them without hesitation! You gave into your selfish desires!"

Carmen threw one of her fireballs at Kamoshida, but purposely missed him by hitting the wall close behind him. He panicked, then stammered, "I accept defeat... You want this? Take it." He tossed the crown away, and Joker caught it in one hand, looking at it with interest.

"Go ahead and finish me off..." Kamoshida continued, slumping to his knees, "You do that, and my real self will go down too... You have that right since you've won..."

While everyone was unsure of what to do, Panther tightened her fist, her face twisted in anger, and lunged her other hand forward. The other fireball was shot forward, and it looked like it would hit Kamoshida. "Ann!" Skull shouted in desperation, but the fireball barely grazed Kamoshida's robe as it hit the ground behind him.

"If his mind shuts down, we won't have any proof of his crimes." Panther pointed out as Carmen reverted to her mask, "So you will admit to them, instead, and will spend the rest of your life atoning for them!"

Kamoshida bowed his head in defeat, muttering, "I've lost. You're through when you lose... What am I... What am I suppose to do?"

"God, are so many adults as dumb as you and Oda?" Kong questioned, stepping forward, "Losing isn't the end! It just proves you have failed because you did something stupid to end up in defeat. Losing is the best teacher, so why don't you learn why you screwed up so badly!"

"He's right, for once." Lioness agreed, "Go and atone for your sins. Feel the same agonizing pain you put others through. And don't you DARE try and shift the blame on anyone else but yourself!"

There was moment's pause, as Kamoshida was on his hands and knees at this point. "All right..." he answered, raising his head to them with tears in his eyes, "I will leave now and return to my real self... And I swear that I'll..." His body glowed brightly, and vanished right before everyone's eyes. His Shadow had disappeared.

Suddenly, the area around them started to shake about them. The Palace was about to collapse. "Hey, just so you know, we don't have time to waste." Mona told the team.

"He's right. The Palace will collapse." Pixie informed them, "We need to leave, now!" Everyone made a mad dash to the exit as fast as they could.

They ran down the stairs, trying to reach the elevator. However, the tower was breaking apart, and the elevator was too risky to take at the moment. They scurried over to the roofs, and through a hole that landed them right in the red-carpeted hallways. They continued on this path, evading collapsing debris as they did so.

"We're gonna die! We're so gonna die!" Panther exclaimed.

"We're not dying! We're not dying! Stop being pessimistic!" Kong exclaimed, leading the pack alongside Joker.

"If we can make it to the second-floor exit, we'll get out of here!" Pixie told the team, "Just keep running!"

Suddenly, Mona appeared on her shoulder, surprisingly in his normal cat form. "No fair, you jerk!" Skull exclaimed as he, Lioness and Panther were right behind them.

Skull suddenly felt his bad knee throbbing in pain. The running they were doing was not doing well on it. In a few seconds, he stumbled and fell. "Ryuji!" Panther cried, seeing him fall.

Lioness looked to him in shock, then saw the debris falling not far behind, closing in on his position. The horror of the flashback involving Daichi holding up the ceiling to protect her. The fact that he wasn't able to escape because of it. The fact that he died to save her, even though they accomplished their mission to change the bad guy's heart.

"No..." she told herself, and she reached down and shot Skull back on his feet, surprising him. "I will not let another person I'm just starting to care for die!" She tugged Skull along as he was trying to readjust his footing as they caught up with everyone else, making it to the second-floor escape. They jumped out the window and onto the ground, where they tumbled and fell. Lioness was the only one who landed on her feet.

"Get moving! You're still in danger!" She shouted at them, racing to the drawbridge as she pulled out her smartphone, and clicked on the Metaverse app, activating it and causing herself to vanish from the world.

Everyone else rose to their feet, pushing one another to the exit as Joker pulled out his own smartphone, and with a few clicks, they went through some distortion, before making their way back to the alley where they started. They had successfully escaped the Palace together, with no casualties.

"Is...is everyone okay?" Ren asked as they gathered their exhaustion out of the way.

"That sucked..." Ann panted.

"But it looks like we made it out..." Mia pointed out, looking about, "Although, I don't see Lioness anywhere. I was sure she escaped before us, though..."

"Guys! Look at the nav!" Ryuji told the group, who pulled out their own phones.

"THE DESTINATION HAS BEEN DELETED." the female voice spoke through their phones.

"Just like what happened with Oda's Palace." Haneru recalled, "Guess that means it's no longer there anymore."

"What about the Treasure?!" Morgana asked.

"I have it right here..." Ren answered, pulling out the Treasure, which had transformed into something different.

"A medal?" Ann noticed, "What, where'd that crown go?"

"That's the true form of the source of Kamoshida's distorted desires." Mia answered, "The gold medal he won at the Olympics."

"To him, this medal is worth as much as that crown we saw in the Palace." Morgana further explained.

"So, that perv kept clingin' to his past glory and couldn't let it go..." Ryuji understood.

"But... this means that Kamoshida's heart might have changed, right?" Ann asked Morgana and Mia, who scratched his ear.

"Definitely." Mia answered, "We stole his Treasure, we defeated his Shadow, and we eliminated his Palace. All is left to do is to wait for the results, and hopefully, he doesn't expel you two." She looked to Ren and Ryuji, who looked anxious, almost forgetting that was on the line, too."

"I'm all antsy! Ain't there a way to check now?" Ryuji asked.

"We'll know soon enough." Ren answered him.

"Well, I, for one, believe that we succeeded this heist with such excitement and flare!" Haneru grinned, "Aw man! I love doing that!"

"After nearly dying from numerous things in there, you are that excited about it all?" Ann questioned him.

"He was like this after we changed our landlord's heart. He is just like his father." Mia sighed, "Still, I know things'll turn out alright in the end for you young ones."

"She is right." Morgana agreed, "Remember how Kamoshida's Shadow said that he's returning to his self in reality? Suguru Kamoshida was a scum. Still, he did seem to regain his conscience somewhat in the end."

"Plus, think of the people who were saved because of what we all did." Mia added, smiling at the group, "I'm proud of each and every one of you. You did a great job on all of this." Everyone looked pleased from her words of praise. What she and Morgana said did ease them up a bit.

"Guess we'll have to wait." Ryuji sighed, "It all boils down to what's gonna happen to Kamoshida... or if we're gettin' expelled for real..." They all wandered away, with Haneru hitching a ride with his mom, while the others went to the train station to go back to their separate homes.

Standing close to the wall next to the alleyway was Guren, listening to everything they said. She looked up at the barely-sunlit sky. With the amount of times she conquered Palaces, she was sure it would work out. There was no need to worry about it at all.

She did make an attempt to hide herself as the Kurosawa mom and son walked the opposite direction from where she stood. ' _It was fun, while it lasted...'_ she told herself, ' _But I should go my separate way, now. I made sure to protect Daichi's friend, as well as made sure these guys were safe. I did my part for them, so I'm gonna go on my way. After all, it's not like I want to be friends with them. I said so to them the second time I met them.'_

As she took an indirect route back to the train station, she did feel a bit of a squeeze in her heart that told her that she was partly lying to herself. In fact, deep down, she wouldn't have minded having them as friends. However, she was too full of pride to admit it.

* * *

 **April 23**

When they got home the night before, all of them were spent, so they ended up all crashing to bed. They did just deal with stealing Kamoshida's heart, after all, not to mention the ordeals they went through getting his heart, so of course they were exhausted.

The next morning, they all went to school as usual. Nothing particular happened to any of them, and the rumors of Ren and Ryuji's expulsion still hovered around the school. However, there was one major difference there.

"Say what?" Guren asked in a surprised manner. She was sitting with Makoto and Haneru during their lunch period, where Makoto had a bit of news for the two of them.

"Kamoshida is not here today?" Haneru asked.

"Yeah. PE is gonna be replaced with Study Hall today because Kamoshida had called in for a day off." Makoto explained, "In fact, from what I heard from the teachers, he apparently placed himself under suspension."

"Why do you think he did that?" Guren asked, "I mean, isn't there an important volleyball tournament coming up?"

"How should I know? And here I was with an idea on how to talk to him to prove your innocence on the volleyball players and Suzui. Even Principal Kobayakawa went to speak with him, but he was apparently not in his right mind..."

"Wasn't in his right mind?" Haneru asked, looking up at the sky, "Hold on. Does this have to do with those calling cards we saw yesterday? Do you think they have a connection or something?"

"I thought that as well..." Makoto agreed, "I mean, it's kind of convenient that Kamoshida acts like this AFTER the day those cards were posted, threatening to 'steal his desires.' But we can't rule out the fact that it could be a mere coincidence."

"Yeah, but that seems very unlikely." Haneru retorted, "I mean, coincidences don't happen a lot, do they?"

"But it could be." Guren replied, trying to divert the possibility, "I mean, stealing desires is impossible, isn't it? There's no possible way in REALITY that a person is capable of that... well, maybe unless they are a crazy hypnotist or knew how to bribe that idiot."

"Fair point..." Makoto agreed, looking at her BFF with concern, "Although..." Guren looked curiously back at her, as was Haneru. "...Well, I did recall something after seeing those 'calling cards' on the school board. It brought back memories of a couple of my sis's investigations involving criminal who were causing you trouble in the past for you. They were setting you up to fall, but they ended up turning over a new leaf later on, and turning themselves in."

"Yeah, your point?" Guren asked.

"During the investigations, they did discover warning letters to a couple of criminals, and they both had similar phrases, such as 'reforming your heart' and 'steal your desires'. They don't seem to have a greater connection to what happened recently other than that, although the warnings had much more etiquette wording to them than this one."

This recollection of past enemies made Guren silent. It was true that whenever a person who targeted her had a Palace, she would leave a calling card, much like how she did with Itsuki in the past. She had hoped those were looked away from, and even changed the way they looked every once in a while if they were discovered, thanks to listening to Sae's reports on the characters. Fortunately, most of the time, the ones who had Palaces would usually shred them up to being unrecognizable, but only two times did she learn that they left them intact.

Haneru, on the other hand, was intrigued by this revelation, and asked, "So someone has been sending calling cards to these guys, as well? So how does your sister know about all this? What's her job?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you about her." Makoto realized, "Her name is Sae Niijima. She's a public prosecutor for Tokyo's District Special Investigation Department."

"Daaaamn..." Haneru gasped, "I bet she must have a lot of stories to tell about her work there!"

"Yeah, if you add in how many times she, Makoto and her father saved my butt from jail." Guren added, "Plus, she is one of the few adults I could trust in this world."

There was a moment's silence, then they heard the bell ring, and Makoto rose up. "We should get back to class. Why don't we talk about this after school. I don't have as much work, with Kamoshida not here, today."

"Good point. Let's go back to Shibuya." Haneru requested, "I would love to hear more about your sister, as well as to get to know what kind of things you like to do."

"It's a deal." Makoto agreed, looking to Guren, "You don't have any problems with that, do you?"

There was a slight stern tone in her BFF's voice, meaning Guren couldn't say no to it, so she sighed, "Fine, I'll come..." She still didn't like Haneru, especially since the few times he one-upped her in strategy and such in Kamoshida's Palace. She wasn't gonna anything about that, though. He didn't know who she really was, yet, and wanted to keep things that way.

* * *

During class, Haneru got a text from the others. Apparently, Ms. Kawakami told Ren and Ryuji the same thing he heard from Makoto. Apparently, that meant the idea of them being expelled was postponed until further notice. Knowing what happened to his landlord, Oda, he knew this was one key bit of evidence that a change of heart HAD occurred. Mia said so herself on that same text. So for now, they had to wait until the school board meeting.

True to their word, Haneru joined Makoto and Guren and set out to Shibuya, where they chose to wander about, window-shopping and such. All the while, Haneru learned a little bit more about the pair.

"So, your father was friends with your parents. And after they died, he felt responsible..." Haneru summed up, hearing a bit of Guren's story, "Was it through him that got you two together?"

"Sort of. Guren may not look it, but she was bullied quite a lot back in elementary school after she lost her parents." Makoto started, smirking at the said girl, who was looking away, "I sort of helped her out of a scrape with some bullies, and she protected me from a punch from one of them. After that, we started to become friends."

"And we were practically the only friends for one another." Guren followed up, "I always considered her my best and only friend, and vise-versa."

"I see..." Haneru understood, "So that's why you act pretty cold with me whenever I'm with you two. You're jealous." Guren blushed angrily, and refused to respond to this. Makoto shook her head at her friend's demeanor.

"By the way, is there anything else you wanna do? I mean besides looking about at stores..." Makoto asked Haneru, "What do you like to do on your off-time?"

"Well... I can think of one thing..." Haneru answered, smiling at the thought.

* * *

Moment's later, they arrived back at the arcade Haneru had been to before, and they were standing right by the dance game once more, after watching a few players compete.

"I've...never been into one of these arcades before..." Makoto admitted.

"Seriously?!" Haneru questioned incredulously, looking to Guren, "What about you? Surely, you have?!"

"Once or twice, but that was a long time ago..."

"Well, I'm gonna make sure you ladies learn the first lesson about being here." Haneru answered, watching the players get off, congratulating the winner, "I'm gonna teach you how to have fun, and to eat my dance skills!" He hopped up onto one of the panels, turning to them, with an expression that just screamed 'I challenge you!'

"I can't say I'm confident in how skilled I'll be, but..." Makoto slowly got up onto the dance platform next to him.

Guren stood there for a second, wondering if she should back out. However, she sighed, as she walked herself up to the other dance platform.

Haneru placed in money for each of them, as he should as a gentlemen, and they all selected their songs to dance to. "So, all we have to do is step on each arrow in time of when they appear on the screen?" Makoto asked the otaku.

"Yep. You have to just dance to the rhythm of the music, like those other guys were doing. You saw how they played the game, so just learn from them. And most of all, have fun! This is a game, after all." He turned to Guren and asked, "You do know how you have fun, do you, grumpy-puss?"

"O-Of course, I do!" She replied angrily, "I'm not doom and gloom all the time, you know!"

"She's talented with playing music on the piano, so she is great with listening to the rhythm of the music.." Makoto explained, "As for me, all I have is my skills in aikido to back me up."

"Hey, in battle, combat has a rhythm." Haneru stated, "That's what I learn from a great martial arts anime. Now, select your song." Each of them circulated through the selection of songs. Guren saw some familiar songs she knew, and chose one that was placed on easy. Haneru chose an intermediate song for his choice. Makoto, who wasn't familiar with many of the songs, just chose a song she at least heard of once before.

"Okay, it will pick one of our songs by random. Hope for your choice to be picked." Haneru told the girls, who watched as the three songs circulated through for some time, before they came to a crawl and picked one song; Guren's choice.

"Oh, this is a new addition..." Haneru noticed, "Can't wait to dance to it! Let's go!" The screen shifted to the panel, with the arrows about start panning up as the voice spoke up, "READY? START!"

 _(Insert 'Power of the Dream' by lol)_

As soon as the male singer sung his part, the arrows started coming, and they began dancing. Haneru had already started pulling off 'Greats' and 'Excellent'. Makoto and Guren, both newbies, were not doing so great at the start. Makoto struggled in particular, not really skilled in games. However, Guren, who despite was light on her feet in the Metaverse, was not doing as well in the game.

"Don't think so hard! Just let your body move with the rhythm!" Haneru told the girls.

"Easy for you to say!" Makoto exclaimed, trying so hard to land at least one 'Great' on her dance.

Guren saw how sloppy she was, and saw how Haneru was just having a blast. The smiling face on him, for some reason, irritated her to no ends. It reminded her too much of how he was in the Metaverse, enjoying the fighting way too much, and not taking the challenges seriously. She had to show him up, and prove to him she was just as skilled. ' _Got to beat this guy at his own game!'_ She told herself, looking at the screen, ' _This is the song I picked, so I won't lose!'_

On the second verse of the song, Guren started to focus a lot better on her panning arrows, and moved her feet to the arrows as they came, slowly starting to go into the 'Good' and 'Great' category, before starting to gain 'Excellent' once in a while.

"That's it! You're gettin' it!" Haneru told Guren.

Makoto started to see her BFF starting to get the hang of it, and tried to focus herself. ' _I won't lose to Guren. I will do better!'_ She declared, taking in her aikido practice to heart, thinking of her positioning of her footing and putting that into rhythm with the music. Eventually, she was also doing as well Guren.

"Yeah! You're getting it!" Haneru cheered, glad the girls were starting to do well in the dancing. He and the two girls were starting to even act as one, their footwork in sync with one another.

At the moment of calmness before the final chorus, there were no arrows. They all awaited for the arrows to appear, with Guren so focused, she forgot to smile at all as she waited. Makoto was smiling, starting to enjoy herself in this game. Haneru closed his eyes for a few seconds, focusing himself, wanting to not only ready himself for the finale, but to get into the dance zone, like he always did before.

Sure enough, just a second before the final chorus came up, his eyes lit up, and they all went into action. However, Haneru was adding his upper body into the mix, moving it with his lower half, almost like he was in a street-performance. Guren and Makoto saw him doing this, and were slightly surprised that he was able to perform so well, and dance so greatly, too.

When the song ended, the screen on Haneru's dance platform shined the words, "WINNER!" On it. "Yeah! I was really feelin' it!" Haneru cheered, looking to the girls, "You guys really were getting the hang of it!"

Guren panted slightly, doubling over for a second before rising up and noticing that her score just barely passed Makoto's, who was also trying to catch her breath. "How were you doing so well on that?" The latter asked, "You literally started to dance there, and you're not even tired."

"Well, I do enjoy street-performance dancing." Haneru explained, "Plus, I was taught some great breathing exercises from some new dance friends of mine..."

"Meaning us." answered a familiar male voice. They turned around and saw Katashi and Lyra standing behind them, with Lyra clapping her hands in applause.

"Katashi! Lyra!" Haneru greeted them, hopping off the dance platform to approach them.

"Nice moves up there, Diddy." Lyra commended, "Loved the moves you were pulling in the end."

"How long were you watching?" Haneru asked.

"About since midway through the first verse." Lyra answered.

"I noticed you didn't get a perfect score." Katashi bluntly stated, "And on such an easy song, too..."

"Yeah. Guess I need more practice." Haneru admitted, rubbing the back of his head.

"Excuse me, but who are these two?" Makoto asked, as she and Guren approached from behind.

"Oh, right. I never mentioned this to you, but I'm part of a dance team." Haneru explained, "This is Katashi Yukihara, the leader of the group, and Lyra Higashi."

"Your in a dance team?" Guren asked.

"Why didn't you tell the school about this?" Makoto asked in surprise, "After-school activities like this should be informed, even to the Student Council President."

"Sorry. Kinda forgot to inform you on that." Haneru apologized, "Never really had an after-school activity until now."

"Who are they?" Katashi asked, looking at Guren, who didn't hesitate at making eye contact with him.

"They're friends from the school I go to, as well as part of the same class." Haneru explained, "This is Makoto Niijima, the Student Council President at our school, and her childhood friend, Guren Sakura."

"Oh, so your the Student Council Prez, huh?" Lyra understood, looking to Makoto, "Pleasure to meet you."

"Hello." Makoto greeted, her tone questioning if they had good intentions, "So, based on how you look, are the two of you college students?"

"I am. Katashi pretty much works at his family's business as a car mechanic." Lyra explained, "I go to Tokyo Kasei University."

"Really? That's a private university, if I remember." Makoto recalled, "I must say, I am impressed."

"And what are you studying there?" Guren asked.

"Costume and Clothing. My family is the head of a clothing company." Lyra explained, "Although, personally, I wanna learn how to make fashionable dance clothes for our business."

"Wait a minute... Higashi? As in, the Higashi Life clothing brand?!" Haneru realized.

"Hm? Oh, yeah..."

Makoto, Guren and Haneru looked at each other, startled. "That brand is extremely popular for all their different kinds of clothing." Guren recalled, "I love how they can be fashionable and comfortable, too! You're telling me your parents are the owners of that company?!"

"Yeah. My father founded the business, but my mother is the head designer." Lyra explained, "I'm trying to do my best in following in their footsteps, but even so..." She twirled and performed a street jazz move before making a pose, "...I found my calling in dance, too. So that's why I wanna be a designer in dance clothing, for all different kinds."

Guren and Makoto looked at one another, finding it hard to believe that a girl from a successful business like this would choose to perform street-dancing instead of some other form. The latter wondered if Takashi might be the reason for downgrading and going along a path like this.

"So, Haneru, have these two seen you dance before?" Takashi asked.

"No. I haven't been friends with them for too long." He admitted, "Makoto's busy with a lot of Student Council President stuff, and Guren...well, she hates me when Makoto's not around."

"Blunt, but I'm not denying he is a nuisance." Guren acknowledged.

"Which I am trying to get you out of being towards him." Makoto retorted, glaring at her BFF, who remained quiet at this.

"Well, we can change your tune a bit about him." Lyra stated, "He's not too bad, and a good dancer. Let's go somewhere where we can show you." She beckoned them to follow her at Takashi as they left the arcade.

"Do we have a choice?" Guren questioned in bemusement.

"You sure they are good people?" Makoto asked Haneru.

"They aren't bad at all. Besides, it's a Dance Life rule to dance with one another if we bump into each other. Like a Pokémon trainer making eye contact with another and battling on the spot."

"I have no idea what that means..." Makoto muttered as she and Guren followed the otaku to join up with the other two.

* * *

Once outside, they found an open area within a three-way crossing, right in front of a movie theatre. Takashi drew a circle in the middle of the place, creating a dance arena for Haneru and Lyra, who chose to dance with one another. Takashi's glare also helped usher people away from the spot, giving no interference as Haneru set up his smartphone and speaker to play music. Makoto and Guren watched all of this take place, as a small crowd started to form, wondering what was happening.

"My body is ready." Haneru told Lyra, "I got our song that we were practicing to before."

"Then let's give your friends and these people a show!" Lyra declared, "Break, play the song!" He responded with a grunt, a nod, and a tap on the smartphone.

 _(Insert 'Masayume Chasing' by BoA)_

The song started, as Haneru slightly backed away from the center as he allowed Lyra to take front in the first part of the song. She stepped forward as the first verse started, and she began into one of the styles of dancing she was an expert in; vogue. Her arm movements were so fluid and rhythmic, but at the same time, somewhat robotic, like they were programmed to move however she wanted them.

As the tempo picked up, she started adding her footwork by changing to her other specialty dance style; street-jazz. Her fluidity and usage of her full body was a sight to behold, not to mention a little on the sexy side, too.

As the chorus kicked in, she started breaking out her dazzling moves, fusing her two forms of dance into one, clapping to the two moments in the chorus, though in different ways each. Makoto and Guren were in awe at the sight of how dazzling her performance was. If anything, it was nothing like what they expected. It was beautiful and graceful, and at the same time, strong, like a swan flying her own path in the sky.

As the chorus ended, she bowed back as she raised a hand to Haneru, who had unbuttoned his school uniform, and was ready to go. He started off slowly and along with the beat, his eyes closed and his face calm as he reached out and grasped thin air, then slid himself in, then doing once more to gravitate towards the center of the circle. He circled about, brushing the ground with his free foot, moving his arms like he was doing tai chi exercises.

As the tempo picked up, his eyes opened, and his movements were going faster as he matched the rhythm, and started exerting his dance skills, mainly hip-hop. He made sure he breathed as he went, so as not to lose energy to quickly. He felt the crowd watching, saw his two friends watching him from the sidelines, and before the chorus broke in, he gave a toothy grin, and made a bound in the air before breaking into his parkour dance style in the chorus, breaking out his best moves, including some breakdance movements he learned from Takashi. Instead of clapping his hands like Lyra did, he stomped his feet in beat with the clapping. This kinda moment was making his heart race with excitement.

When the rap moment came in, Haneru backed off as Lyra stepped in once more, using more her vogue than street jazz moves, but circling her dance partner, who moved with the echoing voice of the singer, mimicking Lyra's stance or movements when they came.

As the singing slowed for a moment, the two started to slowly mirror one another, their limbs and body in sync with one another. The bass drum beat kicked in, and their moves sharpened a bit, and they took positions as they stood side-by-side as they raised their outer arms high at the final note.

On the final chorus, they started dancing to the rhythm, fast and in sync. They then broke into their individual styles, which seem to mesh together so well without one being more out of place than the other. They kept going back and forth between dancing in sync and dancing to their individual styles throughout the dances. On the first 'hey, hey', Haneru seem to mime hammering Lyra's waist, bouncing to the beat twice. On the second 'hey, hey', they stood back-to-back as they flipped one hand up and the other one down, almost making a Buddha statue.

As the song ended, they slowed their bodies, until they took their individual stances, with Haneru on one knee and hand, and Lyra with her right hand over her heart, almost bowing, but both of their heads were raised and smiling towards Guren and Makoto.

 _(End song)_

As soon as the song ended, their was a rousing cheer from the crowd, which grew much larger than before, startling the two girls watching. Takashi grinned a toothy grin as he stood in front of the music player and speaker. Haneru didn't even notice how big the audience was, but beamed after a couple seconds as he and Lyra waved to the crowd.

"Thank you! Thank you!" Lyra called out to them, "We're two of the quartet dance team that'll free your hearts! We're Dance Life! I'm Fresh..."

"...And I'm Diddy...!" Haneru followed.

"...And we'll dance for freedom!" They finished in unison, striking dance poses together, causing the crowd to cheer more for them.

Once the crowd departed, Takashi gave Haneru his music player and speaker back, and they approached Guren and Makoto. "Well, what did you think? Was our dancing awesome or what?!"

"I gotta say, it was really exciting to watch!" Makoto answered, smiling happily, "You looked like you were having a ton of fun out there."

"Well, dance is fun!" Haneru answered, "And it's a great way to express myself and who I am!"

"You did a really great job out there, by the way." Lyra told him, raising a hand to him, "Your dance practices are paying off."

"All thanks to you guys!" Haneru answered, responding by clapping his hand on hers, and both snapped their fingers in unison. This was the dancer's salute.

"So, what was that whole thing with 'Fresh' and 'Diddy'?" Guren asked.

"They're dance names." Lyra answered, "Each of us has to have one. Haneru's is Diddy cause he said it was based on a video game character."

"Typical answer for an otaku..." Guren scoffed.

"So, is it cool for me to be with these guys?" Haneru asked Makoto, "I mean, you're the Student Council President, so you're the one to judge if this is okay or not."

Makoto almost forgotten that she did bring this up, then she answered, "Well, at the moment, I don't see any problems, so I'll make a note for the school to be notified of your dance team. I expect you notify me of anything inappropriate for a high-school student shouldn't be part of."

"Roger!" Haneru saluted her.

"Now that we got that outta the way, we should get going." Takashi told Lyra.

"Oh, yeah. Why were you guys here in the first place?" Haneru asked.

"Just a little donation I was making." Lyra answered, thumbing towards the street corner, where she had a wagon full of stuff, "Stuff Takashi, Noboru and I don't need in our places, and are giving them to Takashi's brother, who owns a welding shop. Likes to create stuff from them.

Guren looked to the wagon, curious of what they had in it. Her eyes lit up at something amongst the top of the pile, and asked, "Is that a piano?" The rest of the group looked and saw her looking at a keyboard piano leaning against a wall.

"Oh that? Yeah, someone close to my place said he didn't want it, so they gave it to me." Lyra explained, "It seemed to still be in a good condition when I found it, but I don't know anything about playing it, so I'm donating it instead."

"Did you even try to play it?" Katashi asked. Lyra nervously looked away at the answer, silently answering that she tried and failed.

"Guren can play it," Makoto informed, much to everyone's shock, including the pianist herself.

"Oh yeah! She once told me she can play," Haneru recalled.

"The sour-faced girl?" Takashi asked.

"Pot calling the kettle black, pal!" Guren snapped, informing Takashi's neutral expression.

"She's just in a sour mood a lot because trouble seems to come her way wherever she goes." Haneru explained, "Actually, the troubles seem to land her in jail."

"In jail?! Seriously?!" Lyra questioned, both she and Takashi extremely surprised.

"You really don't know how to keep your damn mouth shut!" Guren growled at Haneru, causing a sheepish look to come across his face. Then to the dancers, she added, "My 'troubles' come from people pushing their crimes on me, not me actually committing them." She was really irritated, it was not from the accusation; she was used to that. What she was irritated for... was her best friend suggesting she play a piano to a group of strangers and Haneru.

As though noticing the tone she used, and Guren knew she did, Makoto asked, "Come on, Guren. Just one song? It's only fair that they hear you after you watched them dance. Besides, it's been a while since I last heard you play."

Just when the Shujin Jailbird was about to say no to her face, she stopped. Makoto was not one for giving puppy-eyes to anyone, but the attempt she was delivering to Guren was hard to resist. Guren flinched at those eyes, backing off slightly with uneasiness. Haneru who was very curious with how good she really was, saw Makoto's look, and a malicious grin formed across his face. He nudged Lyra, pointed out Makoto's expression, and she understood what that meant.

"C-Come on, Makoto. Stop it with those eyes..." Guren started, but was stopped by the sudden appearance of Haneru and Lyra coming to Makoto's side, giving almost similar expressions.

"If Makoto says your really good, I have to hear you play!" Haneru anxiously stated.

"Come on. Just amongst us artists of music, pleeeease?" Lyra pleaded.

Katashi, on the other hand, saw Guren seemingly paled up upon seeing their expectations and couldn't help but feel a bit of pity for her.

Try as she might, the triple gaze that was delivered to her was too much. The girl finally said, "Fine. But one song." As she went to check out the piano, the three who practically forced her to submit looked at one another, giggling slightly at their accomplishment

Guren placed the board on the stand it came with and turned it on to test out the keys. After testing them out, she grabbed a fold-out chair that was in the donation pile to sit on and closed her eyes, imagining that she was in her uncle's cafe. Once the image was clear enough for her, she started to play a song.

 _(Insert 'Adamas' by LiSA)_

At first, those that didn't know how good Guren was with the piano were thinking maybe she couldn't really play or that she can play okay. But boy were they wrong when they heard and saw how fast she was going as she was playing. They were especially caught by surprise when, seconds into the song, it was as though they were hearing a professional play instead of a high schooler.

"Whoa..." Haneru breathed out.

"She's great, isn't she?" Makoto asked, taking a video of Guren playing.

"Great? Listen to her! She's awesome!" he whispered, "I loved this song before, but she's really delivering it well!" Makoto smiled at his honesty.

Some time in the song, a smile formed on Guren's face, as she felt herself getting calmed down, as usual when she plays. That and adding in the passion that the group can feel through her song, all of Takashi and Lyra's previous impressions of the girl went away, now replaced with awe.

When what sounded like a second verse came, Haneru found himself tapping to the music. Soon enough, the tapping became dancing, and he was in rhythm with the song. He improvised the dance as he went, using more of his hip-hop dance style. Even Guren was getting into the song, as she stood from her seat and kicked the chair away, getting a little more passionate in her playing. The little combo was getting the Dance Life even more excited, as Makoto started to happily record both her friends as they do their specialties.

Once the song came to an end, the Dance Life and Makoto all applauded to the two performers. In fact, an audience formed from around the team, drawn in by the song and dance that the two delivered. Guren opened her eyes, realizing where she was, the crowd that joined her BFF and the two members of Dance Life, and the unintentional dancer that joined her music. He panted from exhaustion, looking back at Guren with the biggest smile she ever seen him give her.

"Wait...were you...?" She was about to ask if he was actually dancing to what she was playing, but was stopped as Lyra and Katashi came up to the two of them.

"Not bad. You two did pretty well out there." Katashi stated.

"Pretty well? Dear lord, you were fantastic, Sakura-san!" Lyra exclaimed, "I didn't expect that from you, much less expected Haneru to jump onto the dance floor."

"Guess I got pretty carried away with the music." He admitted with a chuckle, looking back at Guren, "But she is right. You got an amazing talent there."

"Thanks..." she answered, smiling at Haneru for a moment, then realizing what she was expressing, she cleared her throat and hid her smile, adding, "I only did it because you guys wouldn't let up those expressions. In any case, I'm done." She placed the keyboard, stand and chair back on the wagon, stating, "Hope the person who gets this will be happy."

"Actually, I have no intention of selling it anymore." Lyra stated, walking up to the piano, "It's clear that we need to keep this around...especially for you."

"What?" Guren questioned, confused by what she meant by that.

"We do make good music, and Noboru, our fourth member of our group, is actually pretty good with developing dance music." Takashi explained, "But we wouldn't mind an actual instrument player like you, who's got skill and passion, to be a part of our group."

"Guren as part of Dance Life?!" Haneru realized what he was getting at. Makoto looked surprised at this, but also a bit intrigued.

"I decline." Guren shut down the proposal, "I'm a busy girl, anyways. I work at a flower shop, I'm a high school student, and I only prefer to play now at my uncle's shop. I'm not gonna partake as your pianist in this group of yours, especially if HE'S involved." She was talking about Haneru, who felt hurt after the fun they had.

"But, Guren...!" Makoto started, but was shut off by Guren stating, "I'm heading home. See ya." She walked off, leaving the group watching her leave.

"She really doesn't like me for some reason." Haneru muttered, "I really can't understand why."

"I guess...you are everything she is not." Makoto answered, "You two are totally opposite to one another, and she doesn't want to get involved, I guess."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Lyra answered, feeling sympathetic, "She really tries hard not to get attached, does she?"

"I'm so sorry for her rude behavior towards all of you." Makoto apologized, "I'd better catch up with her. Thanks for the great time today, Haneru. I'll see you tomorrow." She waved him goodbye as she raced after Guren to try and catch up with her.

"I really don't get what her problem is." Haneru muttered, "I could tell based on how she played that she loves music, but why doesn't she like me?"

"She's rebelling." Katashi answered, getting looks from the two, "Her music showed not only the passion she had in her heart, but also her frustration. She said she has dealt with all kinds of trouble being accused of things she hadn't done, and I can tell she hates so many people so much because of it. Our group was designed for people to be free, and I think her heart needs to be free of that anger."

There was a paused as the trio looked onwards, not able to see Makoto or Guren anymore. Finally, Lyra asked, "When did you become so poetic like that?"

Katashi looked slightly baffled, then angrily barked, "Just because I'm no college student doesn't mean I can't say something intelligent once in a while! Oh, just forget it..."

"You're right, though." Haneru agreed, looking along the path ahead, "And that makes me wonder if she hates me because of the person I am, or because she is jealous of who I am?" The two older members looked to him, curious by his words, and agreeing their might be some truth to it.

* * *

 **May 2**

Over a week past since the trio last hung out together. Guren was avoiding Haneru at all times, even with Makoto around. She was unable to talk the Shujin Jailbird into spending time with Haneru for the moment, so Makoto decided to let her be for the time being. Haneru wasn't too keen on trying to convince her to hang out with her either, what with how she treated him and his dance friends with a cold shoulder.

He instead spent time with Makoto, whether it was studying together, or talking about stuff they like or dislike. He also spent time with all the other members of the Phantom Thieves, who were concerned about Kamoshida, who had not come back to school after they destroyed his Palace. This didn't steady their nerves completely, as expulsion was still on Ryuji and Ren's minds. They wouldn't be relieved of this anxiety until they were sure Kamoshida wouldn't expel them. And the answer was gonna be shown today.

Everyone gathered in the gymnasium for a morning assembly, standing in line their individual groups. Haneru was standing a bit of a distance from Guren and Makoto who stood together in front of their class. Ann was also by herself, but Ryuji and Ren were close together. The school was wondering why this school assembly was taking place. Some assumed it was due to Shiho's attempted suicide. Others thought it was due to the calling cards. Those who used Personas in the Metaverse, apart from Guren, were sweating slightly at what might happen.

Principal Kobayakawa got up on stage and went to the podium. "Let's begin this school-wide morning assembly." He began, "As you all know, a tragic event took place the other day. Thankfully, we have been informed that she has pulled through, but it will take time until she recovers. Everyone here has a bright future ahead. I implore that you rethink the importance of life and-."

The principal's speech was cut off by the sound of the gym doors opening up from nearby. Everyone looked and gasped. It was Kamoshida, standing there with his arms holding the doors open. However, there was no pompous demeanor like he had before. Only one of a man who was full of guilt.

"Mr. Kamoshida! What's the-." Kobayakawa started, but Kamoshida raised a hand to silence him.

"I...have been reborn. That is why I will confess everything to you all..." the PE teacher started, walking up onto the stage and in front of everyone. This caused the students to murmur in confusion, while Ann, Ren, Ryuji and Makoto were startled at this. Guren furrowed her brows, while Haneru was smiling, getting a sense of deja vu, and recalling when Oda was expressing the same emotions, too."

"I have repeatedly done things that were... unbecoming of a teacher." Kamoshida admitted, "Verbally abusing students, physically abusing my team, and... sexually harassing female students. I am the reason why Shiho Suzui tried to kill herself!"

He fell to his knees, tears pouring from his eyes as he continued, "I thought of this school as my own castle. There were even students that I sentenced to expulsion, simply because I didn't like them. I will, of course, rescind those..."

He looked up and over to the third-years, seeing Guren standing there, and added, "And...all those rumors about how Guren Sakura was the cause of the abuse and Shiho Suzui's attempted suicide... they were started by me. I threw spite at her due to her reputation, and pinned my crimes on her as a result. I should've never done that." Those closest to Guren looked to her, who looked down, her eyes shadowed from view. Makoto looked back at her, relieved to see her BFF's innocence proved.

"I am truly sorry for putting innocent youths through such horrible acts." Kamoshida apologized, bowing to the students, "I am an arrogant, shallow and shameful person. No, I am worse than that." He bowed deeper, hitting his head on the stage floor. "I will take responsibility and kill myself for it!"

The words stirred the students and teachers up, shocked at what he was planning to do. Some teachers were calling to the students to return to their classes, while others were making excuses for his demeanor. Haneru was worried he might do this, but Guren remained stone-faced. For some reason, she didn't care, one way or the other what happened to him. And it wasn't the first time she felt like this about a criminal.

Principal Kobayakawa raced to Kamoshida's side and demanded, "Mr. Kamoshida! Please get off the stage for now!" Kamoshida didn't move from his position. His tears were drenching the stage.

"DON'T RUN, YOU BASTARD!" Ann's voice suddenly roared from the crowd of students. Kamoshida looked up, seeing her intense glare back at him. "Shiho's still alive even after all the things that made her want to die! You have no right to run from this!" Guren was shocked and amazed at Ann's words. Then again, she did allow him to live before in the Metaverse. There was no way she would let him kill himself, right after allowing him to live.

There was a pause, as Kamoshida looked back down at the floor his tears were at. Finally, he answered, "You're right. You're absolutely right. I should be punished under the law and atone for my crimes..."

He looked up at the students again as he followed up, "I did horrible things to Takamaki-san, as well. In return for giving Suzui-san a position on the team... I tried to force her into having relations." The students were all disgusted by these words, finding it hard to believe the man they looked up to would stoop so low.

"As of today, I will resign from my position as an instructor and turn myself in." Kamoshida declared, "Someone, please call the police!"

While everyone was stunned and amazed at what he was doing, including the heroes, one of them pulled out his phone, and dialed for the police. "I'm doing it, right now!" Haneru called out, getting so many people's attention. Makoto and Guren were especially surprised.

"Hey! What are you doing?! Hang that up, right now!" one of the teacher barked, stomping towards him to take his phone.

"This is Kamoshida's request!" The otaku retorted, looking at the man in question, "I will follow through with this, if that is what you want." he looked back at the teacher again as he finished, "It's his choice, not yours!"

The teacher was stunned at his words, but looked up at Kamoshida, who nodded his approval. "Please do." He answered, "Let me be judged by my crimes, and atone for them." Haneru looked at the teacher, who was hesitating at first, then slowly backed up as Haneru contacted the police, calling them to arrest Kamoshida.

To say that there was a commotion in the gymnasium would be an understatement. Teachers and students were in astonishment as to what was happening to their star teacher. Haneru was being judged by his actions, though it was something he ignored. Teachers were now trying to usher their students back to their classes, while they discussed if this had to do with the calling cards last month.

Once Haneru hung up the phone, he approached the principal and Kamoshida, saying that they would be here soon. Kamoshida was grateful, while Kobayakawa was beside himself, asking the otaku to see him in his principal's office immediately. Makoto jumped in, requesting that she would like to be present for what the principal had to say to him. Guren decided to leave them alone, knowing that she wouldn't do anything to help the situation.

' _Haneru is something else...'_ She told herself as she went back to her classroom, ' _He switches up his personality due to the situation so easily. He has a sense of justice and acknowledges what needs to be done, but he's such a goof, and never takes the job of a phantom thief completely serious... Well, whatever. It's not like I have to deal with him, nor any of those other guys, in the Metaverse again. I'll just have to wait for the next person who tries to pin me as the criminal, and make them my next target...'_

As the place emptied, Ryuji and Ren joined up with Ann, looking at the empty stage. "His heart really did change..." Ann stated.

"Seems like it. I just can't believe that Haneru was the one who phoned the police." Ryuji stated, "Hope he won't get into trouble for it..."

"He should be alright." Ren assured them, "It was all for the best, after all."

"Yeah... I guess you're right." Ryuji replied, "But things're happenin' way too fast."

Just then, they heard footsteps, and three students approached the trio. Mishima was one of them, as well as two girls who was rude Ann for her reputation of being Kamoshida's girl. "Takamaki-san... I'm sorry!" Mishima bowed to her in apology, "We all knew... but we pretended we didn't." This was surprising to the blonde girl.

"Takamaki-san, I had you all wrong..." the taller girl stated, "I'm sorry that I spread rumors about you!"

"I didn't know at all..." the black-haired girl followed, "Kamoshida was forcefully pushing himself on you... It must've been so hard on you!"

"I'm sure there's a ton of people who want to apologize to you." The first girl added, "We're so sorry..."

Ann was stunned at the apologies she was given, then shook her head at this as she calmly responded, "No, it's okay. The same goes for me too. Besides, that's all in the past now."

Suddenly, a teacher approached them, calling for the group to return to class. The two girls left, but Mishima turned to Ren, stating, "I can't apologize enough for what I did to you. I swear I'll make it up to you someday." With that, he walked away.

"Looks like Kamoshida ain't the only one who had a change of heart." Ryuji realized, grinning at Ren and Ann, "Man, I'm glad for you. Looks like those weird rumors are gonna go away."

"My thing doesn't really matter." Ann retorted, "We made Kamoshida apologize about Shiho... That's more than enough for me."

Just then, her phone buzzed, and Ann picked it up. She looked at the text that she got, and her eyes widened in shock. "What is it?" Ryuji asked, praying nothing bad just happened.

"It's from Mia. She said Shiho had just woken up!" Ann exclaimed.

"Really?!" Ryuji gasped, "That's great!"

"You should go and tell her what had just happened." Ren told her.

Ann's eyes were tearing up, but she nodded in agreement. She hurried off, racing to the hospital where Shiho was at.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Principal Kobayakawa's office, Haneru was getting an earful from the principal, with Makoto standing beside him. "Do you realize what you did was not your choice to make?" the principal questioned Haneru.

"I honestly don't see what I did wrong, sir." Haneru answered, "He admitted to the crimes he committed, and gave permission for me to call the police. Are you suggesting a student wasn't allowed to make the call?"

"Exactly! I understand you were trying to do the right thing, but when it comes to moves like that, you should've left it to us teachers to follow through with that call!" Kobayakawa sighed as he tried to calm himself, "Niijima-san, do you have any say in this matter?"

Haneru looked to Makoto, who looked down, worried to make a straight answer, then replied, "While I do believe it should've been left to a teacher or another adult to call the police, Haneru did make a mature choice in that moment, and a reasonably justified one. I don't condemn his actions, but I request he leave it to someone the police would take more seriously."

Haneru remained quiet at this. Makoto was in a neutral stance at this point. She knew what he did was right, but believed an adult should've handled what he did, instead. While he knew what he did was a bit on the mature side, he felt it was the right thing to do. Besides, he did it with Oda before, so there was not really that big of a difference, other than that he wasn't as closely tied with Kamoshida as he was with his landlord.

Principal Kobayakawa sighed, then stated, "Now we're going to have to deal with the loss of Mr. Kamoshida, not to mention the reputation this will cause our school because of this mess. I am going to contact your mother on this matter, along with what you did, Kurosawa-san." Haneru didn't mind. After all, his mom saw him do this before, and she helped change Kamoshida's heart. There was no problem in this call.

"Now, onto a different topic, I would like to ask for your help, Niijima-san." The principal continued, "It seems that based on rumors, there might be a connection between Kamoshida's sudden change of heart, and those calling cards that showed up on our school board almost two weeks ago. It could be possible a student is involved with this situation. I would ask that you look into this."

"Of course, sir." Makoto replied, "And, if it's not too much trouble, I would like to request Haneru Kurosawa's assistance in this matter." If Haneru had a drink on him, he would do a spit-take from sudden shock.

"Oh? And why would you request that?" Principal Kobayakawa asked with curiosity.

"I have spent a good amount of time with him, and I can say he is not only a smart student, but also has a different perspective on things that I usually don't see. Not to mention he has an honorable sense of justice, if albeit an enthusiastic one, at that. It should be the least he can do for acting out before."

"Hmm..." Principal Kobayakawa was deep in thought with this, "Well, I believe that will be fine. You still support Sakura-san greatly to stay in this school, despite her reputation. Despite that, her grades are nearly as great as your own, and she has retained a reasonably track-free record on-campus. As long as you can keep Kurosawa-san in-line, then I have no problem with your recommendation for his assistance on the matter."

"Thank you, sir." Makoto thanked him, "Is it okay for us to return to class?"

"You may. I hope to hear reports on these 'Phantom Thieves of Hearts'." With that, the two students left the principals office.

"So...when did you first think I wanted to even help find out who changed Kamoshida's heart?" Haneru asked, "I certainly didn't even think about doing that."

"Well, I followed through with what I said before." Makoto explained, "You have a different perspective on things, just like Guren does. I would ask for the two of you to help me on this situation. While it is Kobayakawa's request to investigate these Phantom Thieves of Hearts, I am curious as to how Kamoshida would have such an abrupt change in personality."

"Well, if the Phantom Thieves did steal his distorted desires, and made him confess his sins like he did, I certainly don't see how it could be a bad thing." Haneru stated, "I mean, they did what you and many others couldn't do; expose Kamoshida for the man he is. Plus, thanks to that, Guren no longer has to worry about being taken away from this school and sent to jail."

"I guess that's true, but still..." Makoto pondered for a moment, then wondered, "I wonder if Sakamoto, Takamaki and Amamiya-san are involved in this mess? They were targeted the most by Kamoshida."

"Come on, that's crazy!" Haneru chuckled, "I mean, if you want to add people who were big targets to Kamoshida, you might as well add in a numerous amount of other people, including Guren."

"I...don't want to believe Guren is involved with any of this." Makoto stated, "Besides, even she couldn't intimidate Kamoshida, and I know she wouldn't get violent with him."

"Wouldn't be surprised if she did..." the otaku spoke from one side of his mouth.

"That's enough on that!" Makoto stopped him, "I know she treated you unfairly, but please try to take in consideration that she has been dealt a hard life. Give her a chance, and I know she'll open up to you... eventually."

"Well, if you say so..." Haneru stated, reaching their classroom, and sliding the door open, apologizing for interrupting the lesson before reaching their seats.

Haneru looked to Guren, who glared back up at him. They looked away as Haneru took his seat next to Makoto, and pulled out his English book to read. ' _Well, today had it's ups and downs.'_ He told himself, ' _On the upside, we finally got Kamoshida to confess his crimes. On the downside, I am now hired to investigate my new friends, and expose the team I am a part of!'_

* * *

 **Next Time:**

 **New Generation: Shadow Phantoms**


	13. P5: Phantom Drive announcement!

**Attention readers of P5: Phantom Drive. I have an announcement!**

So, I know I haven't updated this series for a while, especially since the release of Kingdom Hearts III caused me to go and work hard on my Sword Art Kingdom series. I was planning to get back to this eventually...or so I thought.

As it turns out, with the announcements of a remake in the form of Persona 5 The Royal, plus Persona 5 Scramble, not to mention waiting for the English release of Persona Q2, it turns out you might need to wait for the next episode for a little while longer. As a dedicated lover of the Persona 5 series, I cannot, in good conscience continue working until I am fully aware of what each of these three games, Story-Wise, have offer. So this series will be currently on hold until further notice. Apologies for the inconvenience.


End file.
